Fight Back
by Kessafan
Summary: One life changing event; it can destroy your soul or it can make you fight back. It was supposed to be the beginning of the rest of her life, in a way, it was. Life wasn't meant to be this hard. Lots of Angst. All Human. All canon.
1. Intro

**Hi Everyone, Well, this is my new story called Fight Back.**

**It's an all human story centred around the characters we know and love so much. In this story, my aim is to keep the characters personalities as possible to what they are in the books, but being human,  
there will be slight differences. **

**A life changing event happens to Rose. **

**This is the story about how her life not only goes in a different direction than she ever thought it would, but also how she deals with what life has thrown at her. Certain events will, in a way mirror events in the books but with my own twist to them.**

**Everyone is there, even a couple of new characters of my own thrown into the mix.**

**I hope you all enjoy my story and let me know what you think.**

**Thanks  
Sandy**


	2. Chapter 1 Getting ready

**Chapter 1**

"I'm so excited Rose!" My best friend in the whole world was literally bouncing on the spot as we walked out of the school grounds for the very last time. "This is the beginning of the rest of our lives."

"Yeah Liss, I know."

I was startled a little when I was grabbed mid stride but then I was a little worried when I saw the look on Lissa's face.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

"What are we going to wear?" She said in all seriousness. Honestly, she is such a princess sometimes. I've never known anyone so into shopping and clothes in all my life. We were so different in so many ways, it's a wonder we are such good friends.

"Oh shit Liss... You scared the hell out of me." As I looked into her beaming face, I had to bite into the side of my cheek to stop the smile that was threatening to cover my face. "You are the biggest dag ever, you know that!"

"Yeah, but you love me!" she said with a wink...

"Sometimes I wonder..." I muttered.

"Hey!" She exclaimed, I giggled as I tried to duck away from her slap to my arm. All of a sudden I was slammed into from behind and almost tackled to the ground. I knew who it was at this was something that only one person would even try.

"Hey Chickadee's... What's hangin'?" She said in her little girly voice...

"Hey Mia." Lissa greeted.

"Hey Toots..." I said. "Now get the hell off me Lard Ass." Mia was our other besty. Liss and I have been best friends slash sisters from year dot almost, seeing as our moms were besties at high school, Mia came into our lives a little later on. The three of us didn't get on at first, but after a series of 'got ya' pranks between Mia and myself, we decided to call it a draw in awe of each other's awesome prank pulling skills. We all thought our brilliance was better served working together against others instead of each other... Now, we were like glue. Not the same as Liss and I, but we were still really close.

"I was just asking Rose about what we're going to wear tomorrow night." Liss said. "Personally, I've worn every single item in my wardrobe to a school function, so..." The last of her comment she drawled out as she wiggled her eyebrows.

"Oww, do I smell the distinct aroma of an up and coming shopping trip?" Mia said over dramatically. I rolled my eyes at her comment as she was just as bad as Liss where shopping was concerned. I had to laugh as Liss stuck her nose up into the air and sniffed like a bloodhound.

"Why Mia... I think you're right!"

Then came the squealing... and the clapping... and the jumping... and the hugging.

"Excellent!" Mia yelled. "I'll pick Rose up first and be at your place at four. So be ready!"

"What!" I exclaimed. "Who said I'm going?"

"Oh Rose..." Mia said while shaking her head from side to side. "Haven't you learnt yet? We're going shopping; of course you're coming with us. Besides, we know what's in your closet and we flat out refuse to let you wear that dress again."

I narrowed my eyes indignantly at her... How would she know what I'd planned on wearing?

"Yeah Rose." Liss agreed. I opened my mouth to respond but they both knew what I was going to say apparently because they spoke before I had a chance to and said the exact same thing.

"The short, red, lacy number?"

I shut my mouth and pouted... yeah, pouted. I know, childish...

I grumbled to myself as I walked off to Mia's car in the lot. Personally I didn't see the problem with wearing a dress more than once or even ten times for that matter, especially if the dress looked like my short, red, lacy number. It was divine...

"Come on Rose..." Liss whined as she wrapped her arm around my shoulder.

"Yeah come on Rose..." Mia mirrored her action on the other side of me so all I could do was huff and shake my head in surrender.

"Fine! But I get final say on what I get. _And_... I need to be back by six."

"What!" They both yelled at me.

"Six? That's not enough time." Liss said.

"Liss, you know that I have to be back by then." She nodded to me, knowing that for years now, it had been my responsibility to cook dinner every night. It wasn't too bad really. More often than not, it was just my mom and I before she left for work, but she couldn't boil water and if I tried to eat anything she cooked, I'd end up in emergency... again. My father... well, the businessman extraordinaire would grace us with his 'high and mighty' presence ever now and again. Personally, it wouldn't surprise me if he had another family somewhere else in the world. When I was little, I used to think he was some mystical being in his flashy attire and jewellery; his accent only added to the mystery that was Abe... now, he was nothing but an absentee father who put more effort into his appearance than his family.

"Fine then... We'll have you home by six." Liss agreed. "But I want to see you put some serious effort into your choice girly... I want to see the eyes of your man bug out of his head again." Lissa couldn't help giggling as she walked to her car next to us. "Too-da-loo bugaloo!" She said as she got in her car.

"She's such a dag." Mia said.

I rode with Mia to and from school most days even though I had my own car. It was a lot easier. She lived four houses down the street from me and having her sit in front of my house beeping the horn was usually all the incentive I needed to hurry my morning ritual. We'd worked out long ago that without her and her annoying habit, I would never make it to school on time.

"Alright Rose, I'll be back in twenty minutes, don't be late, you know what I'll do otherwise."

"Yeah, yeah... I'll be on the porch waiting." I chose to ignore the little snort of amusement that came from the seat next to me. I got out and waved to her as I ran up to my house. If I had any chance of fulfilling my promise, I had to hurry...

I grabbed the key from the pot plant at the front door and quickly ran inside. First stop was the kitchen where I took out some frozen beef steaks to thaw for dinner tonight. I ran up the stairs and threw my schoolbag into my room before darting off to the bathroom. I think I gained a new world record for the fastest shower ever... With the towel around me, I ran across the hall to my bedroom and straight to my closet.

I didn't have time to look to dressy, so I grabbed my black skinny denims and my two favourite tank tops. The jeans can be an absolute bitch to put on when you're in a hurry; luckily I have good balance as the hopping around my bedroom would have been a major hazard to my health otherwise. The black tank top went on first and then the red one. The red one was a gift from Lissa for my last birthday. She would always roll her eyes at me when I'd wear my tanks; apparently they were 'common'... So she decided if she couldn't stop me from wearing common clothes, then she'd make sure that the ones I did wear were a little more 'upscale'. I'd never seen anything like it really, blood red with designed rips that were edged in lace and black diamantes. Not my normal style, but every girl likes a little 'flash' every now and again. I chucked on my strappy black pumps and brushed my hair on the way down the stairs. I threw the hairbrush onto the little entry table by the door and flung it open.

"What? _No_..." I grumbled as I saw Mia sitting on the lone chair by the porch railing. "I'm not..." I glanced at my watch and found that it was now thirty minutes since I was dropped off. "Don't say a word Doll Girl..."

Mia giggled softly behind me as we walked to her car. I really, honestly thought I'd made it this time. We got to Lissa's house, well mini castle, in just under ten minutes and she just had to rub my apparent tardiness in by tapping her manicured finger against her watch.

"For that, you're in the back princess." I teased her through my open window. She quickly poked her tongue at me before opening the rear door and flopping in.

"Hand it over sister..." Mia said with a smile. I was confused for a second but then Liss leant forward and handed her a ten dollar note. I couldn't believe it... they bet on me! Again!

"Thanks Rose... At this rate, Mia will be richer than my parents." Lissa said in a fake sulky whine.

"You're both bitches, you know that right!" I said to them. To this they just laughed and the rest of the trip to the mall was spent in deliberation of what they thought we all should wear to the graduation party tomorrow night.

Somehow, I was roped into hosting the party at my place. Everyone knew that my parents wouldn't be home, and really, the thought of one of my mother's prized but damned ugly, self-made vases smashed on the floor was somehow appealing. She worked the nightshift as a security guard at a local warehouse and didn't come home until the wee hours of the morning.

As much as I didn't want to ask her for permission, I knew if she came home to a house full of passed out teenagers and floors covered in empty bottles and vomit (and possibly a smashed vase or two), I would have my ass kicked from here to Timbuktu. So I had spent a week grovelling and promising and sucking up over a party that now I didn't think I even wanted... Shit, the things one does for her friends!

"_I'm holding you responsible Rose." She said to me after she finally gave her permission. "And so help me God, if anything gets broken, I'll break you. Do you understand me?"_

"_Yes Mom."_

I spent the next few days moving anything breakable, even her ugly assed vases and putting them out of harm's way. Unfortunately, the breaking of said vases would have to be a reality in my mind only... Bloody shame if you ask me...

As we made our way to the first dress shop a feeling of dread passed over me. I had a bad feeling about this party ever since I got permission to host it. I should be just as excited about this as Lissa and Mia, but I had a feeling that I was going to live to regret tomorrow night.

"Oh Rose..." Lissa drawled. "This is so _hot!_ Try it on..." I cringed as I looked at the little black scrap of material she expected me to wear.

"No. There's no way in hell I'm wearing that."

"Why not? You have a killer body Rose and you know it, you'll make every guy's eyes pop and tongues drool when they see you in this. And just think of how jealous you'll make all the girls..." Damn if she knew just how to bring me around to her way of thinking. There were a few girls I'd like to see squirm...

"Fine, give it here."

"Rose, what about this one?" Mia said from a few racks over. Apparently black was the theme... The dress Mia had was something a little more what I'd had in mind. So I walked into the change rooms with the two dresses and tried to get into the spirit...

I put on Lissa's choice first. 'Scrap' was too good a word for it really. The halter neck of the dress, well, if you could call it a dress, split all the way down to my sternum and left my back completely bare. Luckily I was blessed with a bust that most girls my age were jealous of and filled out the two pieces of material. The barely there skirt was only big enough to cover my ass cheeks. This was certainly not something one tried to sit down in; flesh would be falling out everywhere.

I walked out of the change room to where the girls were and both of their jaws dropped when they saw me.

"You _have _to get that dress Rose." Lissa said excitedly. "You'll be the hot topic on everyone's lips for the next twelve months!"

"Hell Rose... How on earth do you stay so bloody thin? You eat like a horse... Can't you be like everyone else for a change and have to starve yourself to look like that? Now go and try on my dress."

I couldn't help it if I had a fast metabolism...

I changed into Mia's dress. It was a tight, black satin dress overlaid in a deep burgundy lace with a single spaghetti strap over one shoulder. It fit like a glove and fell right into the category of 'less is more'... You know, less skin showing the sexier you looked... I went out to show them and was rewarded with a knowing smirk from Mia.

"See, I told you she'd look great. Aren't you glad you didn't take up the bet?" Once again, Lissa's tongue made an appearance but this time directed in Mia's direction. I smiled as I went back to change, I was ecstatic that finding my dress was so painless... Now I just had to suffer what was to come next... Lissa's dress.

After paying, I followed the girls around from shop to shop.

"Liss, come on..." I complained, "...we only have an hour before we have to leave. You've found heaps of dresses, just pick one already..."

"Stop your whining Rose." She grumbled. "Not all of us were bestowed with that..." she said waving her hand up and down my body. Both Lissa and Mia had bodies that super models would kill for; fine, slender, petite... but for some reason they both wished to have my bigger chest and curvy body.

Mia then came out of the change room in a stunning royal blue strapless dress. The color was perfect against her pale skin tone and blonde hair. Anyone who didn't know would think that she and Lissa were sisters. The only difference was of course the eyes and facial features, and of course the fact that Mia was a good foot and a half shorter than Liss.

"That's it Mia... that's the one." Liss said. It only took one more store to find Lissa's dress, thank God! She nearly had a fit when I held up the ice green satin slip dress. My mother would say it looked like some sort of petticoat or night dress, but she was as old as the hills and just didn't 'get' today's fashion at all... Apparently Lissa had the "most perfect" silver shoes at home, so I breathed a sigh of relief that we wouldn't have to shop for shoes... Though I must admit, shoes were my one shopping weakness. But we just didn't have time for that today, I had to get home otherwise my ass would be bacon.

"I can't believe we all found dresses so fast." Lissa said as we pulled up outside her house. "Okay Rose, I'll come to your place at lunchtime tomorrow to help you get ready alright?"

"Lunchtime? Seriously...?"

Mia and Liss gave each other a knowing look before staring back at me with their eyebrows raised up in a 'you're kidding right' look.

"Fine... whatever. See you tomorrow."

She grabbed her bags and leapt out of the car waving to us frantically as she ran up to her front door.

"Man, I wish I had her energy." Mia said.

"I know..."

Once Mia dropped me off at my house, I ran upstairs to put my shopping bags into my room and then quickly came back downstairs to start on dinner. I didn't see Mom anywhere when I came inside; she was probably next door again.

While I got dinner ready my mind wandered to how I was going to look in my dress tomorrow night and what the look on my man's face was going to be like... I think I was starting to get a little excited...

* * *

**So... What do you all think so far? A lot more happens in the next few chapters, so don't forget to review for me.**


	3. Chapter 2 A party to end all parties

**Okay, well you all seemed to like the story so far and a few are wondering who Rose's man is... Well, wait no more! hehehe This story seems to be writing itself and I'm so far in front of myself it's not funny... So I thought I'd get the second chapter up for you all.**

**I hope you enjoy it.**

**Sandy**

* * *

**2. A Party to End All Parties**

"You know Rose, its times like this that I wish I was a brunette. You look stunning, like some middle eastern princess or something!"

"Thanks Mia. You don't look half bad yourself, you know. In fact we all look gorgeous." I normally wouldn't tell Mia something like this, it tends to go to her head and then she's impossible to be around until her head deflates.

"Yeah, I know right! I know I'm not perfect, but I tell ya, I'm so damn close it scares me." Mia smiled. Uh-oh... too late!

"Gees Mia! Love yourself much?" She gave me a half hearted indignant look, but she was in a way too excited mood to pull it off. I've seen grown men wither under one of her glares.

"Well thank you Rose," Lissa said while shaking her head. "...and yes Mia, you're right she does look smokin' hot... And who's to thank for that? Moi!" Lissa said proudly.

I had to give credit where credit was due and I had to bow to the awesome skills of my best friend. Her calling in life was to be either a hairdresser or make-up artist or maybe even both. She really was brilliant. She could even make Camille Conta from school look good I reckon... and _that's_ saying something. I'd always thought my eyes were nice, but now after Lissa had been let loose, they looked amazing. She added some false eyelashes and in Mia's words, 'made my eyes all smoky and sexy'. My hair had been pulled and preened and curled within an inch of its life. In my new dress, I kinda did look exotic; I suppose having a dad from Turkey sort of added to the whole Middle Eastern princess look.

"Yeah, yeah... you're all that, Miss Thang." I teased. "Don't go thinking you're all that either, you won't be able to leave my room otherwise. You know, with having such a big head and all."

"Oh, ha ha Rose. Funny..." She smirked when I poked my tongue out at her. "Come on, we need to get downstairs, everyone will be arriving soon." That feeling of dread had never really left and now it was so close to starting, the feeling just got worse.

"What's wrong Rose? Still worried?" Liss asked me.

"Yeah, a little."

"Well stop it. Everything will go according to plan, you wait and see... We're going to have the best graduation party _ever! _They'll be trying to beat it for years to come... It's going to be the party to end all parties."

"I hope you're right Liss..."

"Of course I am." She grabbed me around the shoulders in a one arm hug and led me out of my room. Within five minutes of going downstairs, kids started to flood into the house and within twenty minutes, you could hardly move without having to push your way though the throng of bodies bouncing up and down to the thumping music.

There was only one person I wanted to see but he wasn't here yet, he was late! I'd almost given up and was about to call him. I decided to give my living room one last scan with my eyes, but then I smiled as I felt two strong arms wrap around my waist from behind. And I knew who it was by his scent.

"Hello gorgeous..." His soft lips and warm breath at my ear made my skin prickle with goosebumps and I smiled as I turned my head and looked into his beautiful blue eyes.

"Hey Mase... You're late!" I turned around in his arms and looked up at him. He was in no way what you could call a 'pretty boy', but he was _very_ good looking. He was also extremely well built for his age.

"I know, sorry. But I'm here now and I'm all yours." He flashed his gorgeous smile and bent forward to give me a very welcomed, hello kiss. "Mmm, you taste almost as good as you look. This dress Rose, it's very..." He didn't finish his sentence off with words, only with a soft growl that reverberated from his chest to mine...

Mason's eyes changed as they ran up and down my body in appreciation, they seemed to darken a shade or two. We'd been going out for the last six months and as close as we were, I still hadn't been ready to take our relationship to the next level. I was just lucky that he was so understanding with me and never tried to push the issue. That said, we'd certainly covered a few bases, so to speak... and that was fun.

"Have you had a drink yet?" I asked him.

"Nah, the only thing on my mind for the whole day was getting to you."

"Aww... That's so romantic." Came a giggling chorus behind me, I knew they wouldn't be too far away. I turned around to see Lissa and Mia grinning at us like a pair of Cheshire cats and then pretending to smooch and grope each other like some sexual fiends.

"Get a room you two." I said sarcastically.

"Can we share yours? More the merrier you know..." Mia said suggestively. "Hey Mase, have you found anyone worthy of me yet?" She was always on the lookout for the next ex-boyfriend...

"Actually I have Mia. I think he's just strong enough to handle a little pocket rocket like you babe. He's actually my cousin from California and he's staying with us until he starts at UW, so I brought him here with me tonight to introduce him to you. I hope you don't mind." He said looking down at me.

"No, I don't mind. What's his name?" I asked.

"Eddie. Hang on..." He craned his neck towards the front door and then waved at someone and within minutes all three of us girls stood wide eyed and slack jawed at the gorgeous, tanned hunk standing in front of us. Where Mason had deep copper red hair, Eddie's was deep brown but I would bet anything that in the light of day it would sparkle with the same red that seemed to be common in their family. He was also tall and built like a tank like Mase, apparently another family trait.

"Girls, this is my cousin, Eddie Castile, our moms are sisters. Eddie this is Lissa and Mia but most importantly, this is my girl, Rose..." Mason said with a wink.

"Hi girls, nice to finally put faces to the names." He said with most adorable crooked smile.

"Oh, Mason talks about us huh?" Mia enquired casually. But to those who knew her well, we could see she was just waiting for the right amount of time to pass before sticking her tongue in his ear! When she saw someone she liked, she'd let nothing and no-one get in her way...

"Yeah he has, but it's more like Rose this, Rose that... Your names come up too every now and again though." Everyone laughed as Mason threw a light hearted punch into Eddies arm.

"You're just jealous douche bag. You'd brag too if you had a girl who looked like mine... Sex on a stick!" He growled with a wiggle of his brow... My jaw dropped in shock but on the inside I was doing cartwheels.

"I can see that Cuz, but who's stick are we talking about here?"

In the blink of an eye Mason's arm left my shoulder and wrapped around Eddie's neck in a hilarious display of male macho-ness and Mia and Liss nearly fell over laughing. Me... Well, as much as I tried to stop it, I felt my cheeks heat... I had a feeling that Eddie was going to fit in rather well here.

"You are so dead Cuz..." Mason growled. He and Eddie where laughing as they battled out the finer details of who's stick I was sex on...

"Insecure much my boy?" Eddie said once they came up for air.

"Hardly."

"Yeah Eddie," I said deciding to lift my mans status a few notches. "Insecurity is not something I ever have to worry about with Mase, especially not with the size of his 'stick'."

Suddenly I could hear a pin drop! That's if you weren't listening to Eddie cough and splutter a few feet away. Liss and Mia had certainly heard me talk like this before but never so publicly, their eyes were nearly as wide as their mouths.

"Go Rose!" Mia said. "Aren't ya proud Liss? Our girls' all growed up!" She drawled like Elly May Clampett on helium. Eddie just snickered to himself and winked at Mason. The girls quickly got over their interest me and turned their attention back to the fresh meat standing in front of them.

"Thanks for the image boost babe. I always knew you were impressed."

"You know it." I whispered.

"So, Eddie... tell us about yourself." Mia enquired, and then she and Lissa took one of his arms each and proceeded to pull him further into the room away from us.

"Well, they should keep each other occupied for the night." Mase said.

"Well, at least until Christian gets here. Lissa is climbing the walls without him."

"I bet. Have you heard how he's going?" He asked seriously. A few months ago, Christian's parents were killed in a case of mistaken identity. They'd gone away for their anniversary and thugs thought they were someone they weren't. The killers were immediately caught and even though it was proven that they were the innocent victims, mud sticks... and the idea of them turning into evil criminals had been planted in the minds of certain friends and family. Christian's Aunt Tasha sold her house and decided to move back here so that Christian could keep some normality in his life and be with his friends while he finished his education.

"As well as can be expected. His aunt finally sold her house last month and happened to buy one just around the corner from Lissa's place; much to her delight. They've just been waiting for the sale to settle but she and Christian were due to arrive home this afternoon ahead of the movers."

"Is he coming here tonight?"

"Yeah, he's as anxious as Lissa is to get together again apparently..."

"I bet he is, I just wouldn't have thought he'd be up for a party so soon after such a long trip."

"You do remember how they can't keep their hands off each other right?" I asked him in almost disbelief. "God... sometimes when she's telling me all about their little rendezvous, she describes it in such detail it's like she pulls me into her head and I'm experiencing it firsthand... Yuck..." That though sent a shudder though my whole body.

"Poor baby. Maybe I need to put some different images into your head." The smirk on his face made me snort in laughter. He was an eager beaver for sure, but his restraint made me love him all that much more.

By 9pm that night the party was in high gear, as was the alcohol consumption. Mia, Liss and I had been egged into having a shot race; I won of course... five tequila's down before the others had even finished their third. Even though Eddie and Mason had downed their fair share as well, their body mass meant they were nowhere near as tipsy as us girls. Not surprisingly, they'd taken on the roll of 'Vomit Police'; they'd already taken a few guys outside so that they could vomit to their hearts content in the bushes rather than on the lounge room carpet.

Christian had finally arrived and the ensuing scream that emanated from my best friend's mouth nearly gave everyone a heart attack. She spent the following half hour wrapped around his body like a second skin, it was pathetic really. I was dreading the description of their reunion in the coming days...

Eddie and Mia hit it off like a house on fire, it was quite amusing actually. He had to be at least 6'1" if not bigger and she's like all of 5 foot tall... She could just about fit in one of his pockets, although I had a feeling that she rather liked how she fit snugly under his arm or attached to his mouth.

By 11pm, fewer people were dancing than before and they now lined the furniture in the room while making out with their other halves; hopefully no-one would decide to take things further. The thought of having to break up someone in the middle of an alcohol induced, uninhibited state of exhibitionism was something I didn't want to experience.

It wasn't long after that that I saw two people standing at the front door who I know where _not_ invited to this party.

"Liss, tell me you didn't invite those pricks?" I asked her after finally pulling her off Christian for five minutes.

"Who?" She asked while looking around the room. I didn't have to answer as her eyes fell upon the two guys that were the bane of my existence over the last three years. Jesse Zeklos and his lapdogs Ralf Sarcozy and Aaron Voda stood smirking at everyone and even at this distance I could see by their eyes they were half tanked! "Oh God! Of course I didn't Rose. Someone's obviously told them about the party and they've taken it upon themselves to gatecrash."

_Of course they did._ I thought to myself. Gatecrashing was the only way they _ever_ got to go to a party because they never got invited anywhere. I doubt if there is anyone at our school who hasn't had a run-in with them over the last few years. Each year they got more and more obnoxious. I walked up to them and crossed my arms across my chest when I reached them.

"Leave Jesse, you and you're – accomplices are not welcome here."

"Oh Rose... We all know you're attitude is all for show, and underneath it all is a deep desire to get naked with me." Jesse was drop dead gorgeous, but the biggest dead-beat known to man. I stood my ground and didn't recoil as Jesse bent forward to whisper in my ear. "I know you secretly dream about me Rose. I bet you wake up all hot and bothered every morning after your erotic fantasies that feature me..."

"You're sick, you know that?" I glanced over to Ralf and Aaron who were standing at Jesse's side laughing quietly.

"_Love_ sick baby... love sick for you."

"Piss off Jesse. Aren't you sick of only going to parties that you have to gatecrash?" I said spitefully.

"Not at all... That's what makes it so much fun Rose. Now, where's the alcohol?"

"You're not..." but that's all I got out before they pushed past me and headed for the kitchen. I couldn't be bothered arguing with them so I turned around to go back and find Lissa, personally I couldn't see what she ever saw in Aaron to lower herself into dating him as a junior. Thankfully she opened her eyes fairly quickly and kicked his ass to the curb. Much to my chagrin, her mouth was now occupied doing something other than drinking or talking...and so was Christians. So I looked around and smiled when I saw Mason walking towards me.

"I see Jesse and his posse have arrived." He said.

"Yeah, I have a feeling those dipshits won't leave quietly though, they're already half tanked. Hopefully they'll get bored soon and leave of their own accord."

About half an hour and one drink later, _said_ dipshits walked up to where I stood wrapped up in Mason's arms.

"Rose, a peace offering..." Jesse said holding out a drink. When I narrowed my eyes at him, he continued talking. "Look, it's the last school party and you'll never have to see me again, let's just part as friends hey?" I narrowed my eyes more trying to work out if I should trust him, but my hazy alcohol brain was working slowly. I glanced back to Mason who just shrugged his shoulders, so I turned back to Jesse and took the drink.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Vodka and Orange." I looked into the plastic cup to check...

"Thanks Jesse." With a nod, all three of them turned around and walked over to some girls that were making their way to the back door. I took a couple of sips of my drink before cuddling back into my man's muscle bound chest.

"Want to dance babe?" Mason asked. I smiled before chugging down the last of my drink and then followed him over to the area that had been cleared for dancing. A few bumps and grinds and I was feeling good... My head was swimming as I looked up into the blue eyes that I dreamt of and I suddenly regretted that last drink.

"You look like you're going to pass out babe." Mason teased.

"Yeah, I should probably sit down for a while."

"Why don't you go lay down upstairs, I've got to go empty the bladder anyway. I'll come up and check on you later."

"Oh gross Mase... I didn't need to have that picture in my head you know." He laughed before pressing his lips greedily to mine. If the alcohol hadn't already made my head swoon, that kiss surely would have. Man he could kiss... He smacked me on the ass and pushed me towards the staircase and then made his way to the bathroom near the laundry room.

Slowly I made my way upstairs, stumbling with each step. My head felt like it was getting worse by the second. I think it was only by the grace of God that I didn't fall straight back down the stairs when I finally reached the top. I turned towards my bedroom door but it took ages to grab hold of the bloody handle... it kept moving. I didn't remember it ever doing _that_ before... Finally I caught it and opened my door. I smiled groggily as I looked at my _very _inviting bed. That's really the last thing I remember. I don't even remember lying down.


	4. Chapter 3 The bright light of day

**Hi Everyone,**

**Well, this story is going well. I am so far ahead of myself with this one, I thought that I would let everyone know that I will be updating it every Friday. I've now got 10 chapters written, so all good from my end! :-) **

**Now... As some of you have guessed... This chapter will have the 'implications' of rape. No visuals... Nothing like that, I don't want to go there... All this story is about is the feelings and emotions Rose is going through and how she gets through a life altering event and those who help her get there.**

**I hope you enjoy this story as much as I am writing it. Don't forget to review for me, without that, I don't know if you guys are enjoying it or not... Spread the lurve peoples! :-)  
Sandy**

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**3. The Bright Light Of Day**

"What... are ya doin'" I slurred. My voice was scratchy and my throat felt like it had been sandblasted. My head...well, grab a sledge hammer and put me out of my misery... I could feel someone touching me but my eyes were so blurry and even though my head was aching, it still felt like it was a hostage in a washing machine set to the spin cycle. I had to squint against the bright lights above me. _What in the hell was I laying on...?_ It was smooth but almost as hard as a floor.

"Just lay still Miss Hathaway." _Miss Hathaway? What the frig...?_

"What?" I couldn't work out what was going on. _Ungh!_ _That smell..._ If I didn't know better, I'd swear I was in a hospital. I must have drunk more than I thought I did; now I'm dreaming about hospitals. I know I find myself in a hospital ER on a fairly regular basis, but to start dreaming of them... _Shit!_

"Miss Hathaway, we need you to lay still."

"What's going on? What...?" My vision started to clear and I couldn't work out why in the hell I was staring at some woman in a lab coat who happened to be between my legs.

"Rose, my name is Dr Olendski. I need you be as still as you can, I have to do an examination."

_What the Fuck! _That sobered me up pretty quick... I still had no idea what was going on or where in the hell I was, but the word 'examination' didn't sit well with me, crazy dream or not.

"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!" I yelled. I thrashed my legs but they were somehow tied up in the air.

"Hold her down."

"FUCK OFF!" Suddenly I had another set of arms holding me by the arms.

"Miss Hathaway, Rose... We're not here to hurt you, but we need to see if you were hurt."

_Hurt? What is going on? _I felt panic start to rise in my chest right about now which spurred on my fighting instinct.

"Okay, okay... we won't make you do anything right now, calm down." I saw the supposed doctor nod to whoever was holding my arms as she was undoing my feet from their confines. "Rose, you're in the hospital. Do you know why you're here?"

"Hospital? No, I don't... What's going on?" I couldn't hold the sob in any longer. Something was wrong, I felt so sore.

"Rose, what is the last thing you remember?" Suddenly the person who was behind me suddenly walked around to stand beside the doctor. She was such a motherly looking woman in her late forties I suppose, quite pretty too.

"Um... A party, our graduation party. I went upstairs to lie down, my head was spinning..."

"Rose!" The sound of my mother's voice was suddenly at my right. The look on her face was somewhere between annoyed and concerned... "What's going on?"

"That's what I want to know." I said still confused.

"Mrs Hathaway?" The doctor asked.

"Ms..." My mother corrected. My father had freaked out when she told him about my impending arrival and then promptly disappeared until after I was born. Needless to say my mother was pissed and gave me her last name, then refused to marry him when he finally woke up and came home. One thing my mother excels at is holding a grudge.

"Ms Hathaway, I was just about to explain. Your daughter was brought in tonight as a suspected rape case."

_Rape? What the...? _Yeah, now the panic was in full force... fear had me firmly in its grasp.

"Suspected?" my mother stuttered. Of course that would be the word she'd pick up on, not the word 'rape'... I couldn't breathe and she was trying to find a way to blame me!

"Are you aware that Rose was at a party tonight?"

"Yes, it was at our house, a graduation party." My mother said defensively.

"We also suspect that she was drugged, but..."

"What!" she yelled before turning her glare to me. "Rose, you promised there'd be no drugs."

"Ms Hathaway," the doctor interrupted, "...no, not those sort of drugs. We suspect that someone slipped her a drug of some sort, possibly in a drink."

"Are you alright dear?" My ears were buzzing bust somehow a soft voice pulled my attention away from the doctor and my mother. I don't know what my face looked like but the woman that stood on the other side of my bed to my mother touched my hand as she spoke.

"No..." I whispered.

"It'll be alright. We'll explain everything shortly. Okay." I gave a quick nod as I looked back to my mother and the doctor.

"Some blood was taken as soon as she came in and we're just waiting on the results, they shouldn't be too far away." I could see the doctor was trying to calm mom down.

"So was she... you know?" My mother asked.

"We're not sure yet. We were about to do an examination when she started to wake up. It really wasn't the best thing to wake up to I imagine. Once she calms down a bit, we'll see what we can do. Do you mind if I speak to you outside for a minute?" She asked my mother. After a quick nod and a glance at me, they both walked out of the room.

"What happened?" I asked the nurse.

"I don't know a lot of details dear..." she said. "...but you were brought in just under an hour ago. As you heard, we've tested your blood for any drugs but we're going to need to do an internal exam to see if you were..."

"Raped?" I asked before she could say it. She nodded. I felt so... violated. "Why can't I just remember?"

"Well, if you were drugged then that is one of the side effects." This nurse had such soft brown eyes, much like my own. For a split second I wondered what it would have been like to have a mother with such soft loving eyes as this lady. "Can I get you a drink of water?"

"Yes thanks." She nodded and went over to a white porcelain sink attached to the far wall. She pulled a cup from the dispenser and filled it up.

"Here you are dear. Don't drink too much until you know that your stomach can handle it alright?" I nodded. I looked down at the cup as I brought it to my lips but my hand stopped as a memory flashed before my eyes...

_Plastic cup... orange liquid..._

"Are you alright? Do you feel nauseous?" The nurse asked.

"No... my head's killing me though." I whispered. I slowly brought the cup to my lips and drank a mouthful of the cold water. Just then the door opened and the doctor and my mother walked back in.

"Rose, did Nurse Olena explain anything to you?" The doctor asked me.

"Not a lot." I replied.

"Rose, after you went up to your room to lie down, some friends of yours came to check on you and found some boys there with you." Now I was starting to feel nauseous... "There were three there and one looked as though he was getting ready to have sex with you. Now, we don't know if any of the boys were successful, that is why we need to do the examination, will you let me?" Tears ran hot down my cheeks as I held the sobs deep within my chest. I quickly nodded and closed my eyes.

"It won't hurt Rose, we promise." The nurse said beside me.

The exam was over pretty quick, which I was more than happy about. Swabs were taken and I was allowed to sit up.

"Okay, I can tell you that I can see that your hymen is still intact. I've taken swabs from just inside and from the outside. Now, I can't say that some penetration didn't occur, but if it did, then it wasn't enough to break your hymen. Okay Rose?" I didn't trust my voice just yet so I gave a quick nod while staring at the board at the bottom of the bed.

"Okay. I got the results from your blood work while I was outside with your mother and they came back positive for the drug Rohypnol. Do you know what that is?"

I nodded again.

"Well, with this evidence and the swabs that I've taken just now, you will have a case if you decide to press charges. I'll leave you with your mother for a while and I'll see you shortly." After the doctor and nurse left the room, my mother turned to me.

"I told you nothing good would come of that party Rose." She growled through her clenched teeth. "Why couldn't you just listen to me for once? Don't you think I might know a little more about life than you? Gees you annoy the shit out of me sometimes." She fumed as she paced at the bottom of my bed, her voice got louder and louder with each word that spewed from her mouth...

"What! Why is this _my_ fault? I was _drugged_ for fuck sake!" My mother's furious face spun to me.

"Don't you dare swear at me little girl. I told you not to..."

Just then the door opened and the nurse Olena walked in with a plastic container with a sandwich in it. I could tell by the look she was giving my mother that she'd heard us yelling.

"I thought you might like something to eat Rose." I really wasn't in the mood for eating right now, but I thought it might make mom shut the hell up. Just then I heard a familiar voice outside... Lissa.

I looked around Olena to the door and within seconds a knock sounded. I looked up to the nurse and I think she understood. She turned around and opened the door.

"Rose? Oh my god Rose... I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

"It's alright Liss, I'm fine."

Her head tilted to one side with a quizzical look before she glanced over to my mother. Looking back at me, I realised that she was holding something back from me.

"What's wrong Liss?"

"Nothing, nothing at all. You're not hurt?"

"No, I wasn't... I'm a bit sore though. I feel like I've been in a fight. What happened Liss?"

"I think you need some rest Rose, you've had a big night." My mother said unemotionally. All the faces on the three people other than me in this room all held the same expression... They all were hiding something.

"Alright, I'm not stupid; I can see that you're all hiding something from me. What happened?" I waited but no-one said a word. "If you think I'm going to be able to sleep when I know something is being withheld from me, you're all sadly mistaken. It's only going to make matters worse, now tell me."

Liss sat on the narrow bed beside me and took my hand in hers.

"You'd been upstairs for about half an hour when... Mase, Eddie and I went up to check on you." She swallowed and then took a deep but jagged breath before continuing on with her story. Something was really wrong, she was way too upset. "When Mase opened the door, we saw that Jesse, Ralf and Aaron were in your room. Jesse was about to..."

I knew what she couldn't say so I indicated for her to just get on with it.

"The others were standing either side the bed holding your arms, Jesse was... Mase yelled at them to get away from you and ran at them. The five guys got into a huge fight; you got caught up in it which is probably why you're sore."

I could see that she still hadn't told me everything. "And..." I said unsure if I really wanted to hear the rest...

"Mase got hurt." She whispered.

It felt like an elephant just took up residence on my chest and my eyes stung as they filled with tears.

"How bad?"

She hung her head and I saw tears drip onto the sheet.

"How bad Liss...?"

"He was punched and he fell back onto the corner post of your bed. He hit it really hard with his head..."

"Liss..." I sobbed knowing what she didn't want to tell me...

"He's dead Rose. He's gone..."

"NOOOO!" I heard the word, I heard the scream, but what I didn't realised was that it came from me...


	5. Chapter 4 A new start

**Okay, Well here's the next chapter. Thanks to everyone who's written to say what they think of the story, it means a lot. I'm glad you're all enjoying it.  
As most of you know, I'm not really good at keeping to short stories, and this won't be any different. It will be a fairly detailed story. **

**That said, I'm not in the medical field and this IS a work of fiction, so if I get something wrong "Medically speaking", please overlook it... If anything like this happens to you, please make sure you get the right help.**

**Anyway, I hope you like this installment.**

**Sandy****

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**4. A new start.**

Liss had me wrapped in her arms for a while after that. I don't know exactly how long, but it was long enough for me to no longer have any tears left. The elephant still sat firmly on my chest, but now, where my heart used to be... was just what felt like a huge black hole... She said that Mason was... gone. Surely she must have got it wrong, he couldn't be gone, not my Mase... At that thought, my eyes started stinging again and a lone tear followed the dried trails left by previous tears.

"Do you want to sleep now Rose?" _Sleep... I don't think I'll ever be able to sleep again._

"I'll go then, let you rest..." She said when I didn't answer. She started to stand up, but I instinctively grabbed her by one of her wrists. I still couldn't talk; I didn't even look into her eyes... I was just – empty. "Okay, I'll stay."

As she started to lie beside me, I scooted over slightly to make room for her. She laid against my back and wrapped her arms tight around me. She stayed with me that night humming some sort of tune and stroking my hair as silent, unseen tears continued to fall.

I don't know what time I eventually fell asleep, but I eventually opened my eyes to a new day. They were puffy and probably red and bloodshot and I could feel the crust of dried tears on my lashes and cheeks. I could tell that Liss was no longer in the bed with me so I looked around the room only to find myself all alone... _Alone... I'm all alone..._

That thought brought on another round of tears and I looked up to see Lissa walk in with a sad smile behind the doctor from before.

"Hi Rose." The doctor greeted. "How are you feeling?"

I didn't answer, I just couldn't...

"I took some more blood early this morning and had it tested and the drug is almost completely out of your system. So that means you can go home shortly."

"Mia's coming; she'll be here shortly to take you home." Lissa said. Of course it would be too much to expect my mother to be here, to offer me some sort of comfort... Bitch! I gave her a couple of nods to let her know I heard her.

"A nurse will be here shortly to take the drip out of your arm and get you ready okay?" The doc said.

"Yeah." I said in a scratchy voice. Just then the door opened and in walked a strange guy, he was fairly good looking and quite muscular, but the closer he got to my bed the faster my heart beat. My breathing also increased rapidly...

"Hi Stan." The doctor greeted. "Rose, Stan will take the drip out for you, okay?"

I was sort of aware that my eyes were as wide as saucers and the panic was doubling with each second he was in the room. As he reached out to touch me, a flash of memory passed through my mind. Nothing concrete, but I knew I had to get away from him...

"NO!" I yelled. "DON'T..." I sat up and started to scurry across to the far side of my bed, which wasn't far. My hands were behind my body and in my blind panic to get away, I didn't register how close to the edge I was. My right hand reached out to only feel air which made my body fall backwards over the edge of the mattress. I couldn't stop my feet from their continued push and I soon ended up in a tangled heap on the cold, hard floor, landing hard on my head and shoulders, a crunch was heard...

"Rose!" Liss and the doctor yelled.

The guy also came running around to the side of the bed where I now laid and I couldn't take my eyes off him. Each step he took sent me scampering further and further away.

"Nooo, Nooo... Don't touch me..." I panted hysterically.

The doctor held up one of her hands behind her. "Stand back Stan..." she said quietly. "It's alright Rose, he won't hurt you."

I couldn't even look at anyone other than the guy in front of me. I kept shaking my head frantically side to side; my breathing was making me light headed.

"Rose, you need to calm down. Talk a deep breath for me, you're breathing too fast." I couldn't do anything, the panic was too much. Black spots started to dance in front of my eyes, I tried to blink them away but they just kept getting bigger and bigger until there was nothing else but black... and then suddenly, I was no longer aware of anything at all...

"Rose..."

_Lissa..._

"Rose, can you hear me? Wake up please darl... Rose?"

My eyes fluttered open and I found myself staring into the jade green eyes of my best friend and sister.

"Liss..."

"Oh God Rose, you scared the living shit out of me." My head was killing me and I squinted my eyes shut as I reached up to where the pain was. "Don't touch your head Rose; you split your head open from when you fell."

_Fell... _I remember falling. Why? _That man... _My eyes flung open and Liss must have seen the panic so she took my face into her hands.

"It's alright Rose, he's gone. Just me and the doc, okay?" I then saw the doctor standing behind Lissa and I gave a quick nod. It was amazing how healing Lissa's hands were; it's always been like this. Just with a simple touch, she could always make me feel better.

"Rose," I looked up as the Doctor started to talk. "What happened before? Can you explain?"

"I don't know. I just took one look at... him, and I just panicked. I don't know what happened; I couldn't hear anything really, just the whooshing in my ears."

"I was pretty sure, but I just had to ask. You had a panic attack Rose. Did you get any flashes of memory?"

"Sort of... not really, nothing specific, just... a feeling, a hand..."

She just nodded in reply.

"Okay, I'll be back in a minute; I need to grab some things to fix up the gash on your head. I'll also prescribe some very mild tranquilizers for you, but Rose, using drugs to help you long term isn't really a solution. What you've been through is very traumatic. It may help you to talk to someone."

"You think I'm crazy?" I asked defensively.

"No, not at all. As I said, you've been through something very traumatic and sometimes talking to someone can help you overcome any panic that you feel when confronted with a situation that reminds you of that trauma. If you want, I can recommend someone. There's a lady here that is excellent and I know her personally. Let me know if that is something I can help you with."

I had no intentions of talking to a shrink but to pacify her I gave a quick nod.

"Okay, I'll be back shortly." With that she left me alone with Liss.

We'd only been talking for a few minutes when Mia turned up... along with another round out crying. A couple of hours later two female police officers came into the room with the doctor and Nurse Olena. I smiled when I saw her, she was so nice and she made me feel so safe. I told them what I could remember and my friends filled in what I didn't know.

"Are you okay Darling?" Olena asked me.

"I honestly don't know. This time yesterday..."

"I know. Can I get you something?" I just shook my head, the only thing I wanted anyone to get me was Mason and that wasn't something anyone could get me. At 5 pm I was finally discharged, loaded with a filled prescription of knock out pills and information on panic attacks and something called post traumatic stress disorder. It wasn't until later, in the drive home, that I saw that the doctor wrote down the name and number of her psychologist friend. I smiled when I saw that Olena had put her name and number on a card as well.

With my two best friends in the world either side of me, we walked to Mia's car. Apart from a quick glance at the papers that the doc gave me, the drive home was silent. My mind wandered to thoughts of never seeing Mason again, never seeing his beautiful blue eyes, his soft sweet smile. How could he be...?

"Rose? We're here." Lissa said as she sat twisted in her seat in the front. I hadn't even noticed that the car had stopped. I looked out my window and stared at the house. I jumped when suddenly my door opened to reveal Lissa staring back at me. I glanced back to the seat that I just saw her in only to find it vacant... How did she get to my door so fast?

"Coming?" She asked. I gave a slow nod and pulled myself out of the car. I noticed mom's car parked under the carport at the side of the house, so she was home... she just couldn't be bothered to come get her injured and distressed daughter from the hospital. Typical.

The closer we got to the house the tighter my chest felt. I was aware that my breathing was starting to pick up. I couldn't understand why the thought of going inside my house filled me with such dread. Suddenly, at the bottom of the few stairs that led to my front door, my feet stopped moving.

"Rose?" Lissa said as she tugged on my arm. Just then the door opened to reveal my mother... dressed in her work clothes. She couldn't even take one night off to spend with me to make sure I was alright... Her work always meant more to her than I did. Bitch!

"Are you coming in Rose or should I just bring your bed out here?" My mother mocked.

I couldn't answer her... I wanted to go inside... sort of, but my feet just wouldn't move. I felt my stomach twist into a knot and the panic started to swirl around in my chest.

"Oh, for God sake child, get over yourself..." she ranted as she walked out of the house and grabbed me by the wrist. She pulled hard and my feet could no longer hold me where I stood.

"NO!" I yelled. My free hand shot out in front of me, grasping for anything it could grab hold of. I now found myself on my stomach across the stairs, one hand in a death grip on the wood, the other burning under the pull of my mother's tight grip. "Let me GO!"

"Rose!" Lissa yelled...

"Get up you stupid child... You're making a scene."

"Nooo..." I blurted out in sobs. With the panic came the black splotches in my vision... I couldn't black out again; she'd drag me into the house if I did... I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I couldn't go back into that house...

"What in hell is happening out here?" Boomed a familiar voice. My father had finally decided to come home. Not for my graduation, not for my party, not because I was hurt... "Rose, get off the stairs, you're making a spectacle of yourself.

He went to reach out for the arm that was still in my mother's grip, but all I could see was the flash of that same memory I had in the hospital... the hand...

"No, no, no, no, no..." I muttered under my voice... I don't know where I got the strength, but just as my father's hand was about to touch my arm, I was somehow able to pull away from my mother. My body instantly flung backwards and I scurried along the cement path on my ass until I found myself in the garden bed.

"Rose!" My mother's voice screeched.

"What's wrong with you?" My father yelled at me.

"No, Mr Mazur... Don't touch her..." Liss yelled.

"What do you mean?" he said angrily, but she ignored him.

"Rose, it's alright. Look at me..." My eyes pulled away from my father onto my best friend. "That's it... Take my hand."

I looked at her hand and after a few seconds, I reached out to her.

"Here Rose." I looked up to my left and saw Mia holding out two pills and holding the bottle of water that I'd had at the hospital. "They'll help calm you."

"Janine, what in the hell is going on?" he asked as I swallowed the little white pills that the doctor gave me. "You said she was fine."

"She is Abe... You know Rose, always over-dramatising everything. She just needs to start acting like the adult she says she is."

My father looked back down at me with a worried look on his face.

"Over-dramatising?" Lissa screeched. "How can you be so heartless? She's your daughter and she's been drugged, nearly raped, bruised from head to toe, her boyfriend is killed while trying to help her and all you can say is she's 'over-dramatising! She's been having panic attacks, but you wouldn't know that would you because you weren't there to see them... YOU... are... a _COW_!"

Even through my haze of panic, I was shocked...

"Liss..." I whispered in disbelief... I couldn't believe she said that.

"Listen here you..." My mother started. She didn't get to finish her rant because my father stepped in.

"Shut up Janine." My mother's mouth dropped open in shock, but then it quickly shut and the expression on her face changed into that of dead set fury. My father looked back down at me and took another step forward which brought on an involuntary gasp and flinch from me. Coming to some sort of decision, he turned his attention back to Lissa. "Are you able to take Rose back to your place for the night? I think she'll probably be more comfortable there with you." He asked.

"Ah...yeah, sure. I don't see that being a problem. Is that alright with you Rose?" I quickly nodded as she put her arm around my shoulder. Personally, I couldn't wait to get away from here; I couldn't even look at my mother. I had firsthand experience with her huge well of bitterness, but her attitude since... well; since the hospital has surprised even me. And being this close to my father was making my skin crawl. I know what the doctor told me before I left the hospital about the panic attacks and the effects of what had happened coming out in strange ways, but he's my father! Why would I be feeling like this towards him?

"I'll ring you in the morning Rose." My father said. I watched as he took mum by her arm and pulled her inside the house.

"I can't believe she can be such a bitch Rose." Mia said in disgust.

"I'll second that." Lissa said. "Come on."

By the time we got to Lissa's house it was nearly 6:30pm and I was absolutely spent – mentally, physically and emotionally. I just wanted to sleep for a week... Lissa had phoned her parents on the way and explained what had happened with my parents. Apparently I was welcome to stay with them for as long as I wanted to and now that I was 18 and officially an adult, _they_ couldn't make come home.

Lissa's mum was standing at the front door when we got there with a sad but knowing smile on her lips.

"Hi Mrs D." I greeted her. "Thanks for letting me stay here."

"Hey Sweetie, don't worry about it okay. I'm so sorry for what you've had to deal with. You know that you can stay here as long as you want alright?" She hugged me as I thanked her again. I've always been close to Lissa's mom, both of her parents really. I'd always thought that I'd been accidentally born into the wrong family and to make up for the mistake, God made sure that I found Liss so that I could find my way to my real home. They'd always treated me as one of the family even if I came from the poor side of the family. "Come inside, dinner's only about five minutes away."

We said goodbye to Mia and I thanked her for all she'd done for me and then walked inside but I started to tense up as soon as I saw Lissa's Dad, her brother Andre and Christian sitting on the lounge watching TV.

"Hey Rose." Christian greeted solemnly.

"Hey Christian." I said nervously.

I got careful smiles and mumbled greetings from the other two and I was relieved when none of them made a move to leave the lounge. But I didn't think I could stand sitting at the table with the guys right now, so I made the excuse that I was tire and not hungry. I'm pretty sure Liss and her mother knew what was going on though, after all my appetite was legendary. Liss and I made our way to the bedroom that I always used when I came over and she told me to go shower and she'd bring me something up later.

The hot water was a welcome relief, but here, I found myself alone again, alone with my thoughts, my memories and Mason's face. Hot tears filled my eyes once again and soon deep sobs racked my body. My legs felt like jello and soon the deep sobs became uncontrollable sobs and they continued to pour out of me as I slid down the wall of the shower. I pulled my knees up and curled my arms around them, the action somehow made it feel as though I was able to keep from completely breaking apart.

"Mason... Oh God... I'm so sorry. Mason..." I continued to cry his name over and over until I felt someone's arms wrap around me. I looked up into the crying eyes of my best friend.

"Oh Rose... Come here. Let it out hun, let it all out."

"He died... because of... me Liss. He's dead – because of me. He tried to... save me and... he..."

"Shh... Don't blame yourself Rose. Nothing can change what happened and you know as well as I do that if Mase knew what was going to happen, he still would have done what he did. He still would have gone charging in to rescue you. You know this."

I did. But that didn't make me feel any less responsible.

On the floor of the shower Liss held my balled up body as the pain of the last 24 hours ripped from my body. Soon the water started to cool and Liss reached up and turned off the taps before leaning out and grabbing a towel, then she draped it over my shoulders before kissing the top of my head.

"I'll let you get up okay? I'll be just outside if you need me." I gave a half-hearted nod and watched her feet as she walked out of the shower. She was such a good friend. No, not friend, she was my sister, my soul sister. I loved her so much, her heart knew no bounds and as always, her touch was able to heal me, even if it was just a little part of me. I stood up and haphazardly dried myself off before stepping out to the waiting arms of my sister.


	6. Chapter 5 The roughest of days

**Hi again... I know that I said that I'd update weekly, but I can't help myself... This story is yelling at me to update my ass! hehehe **

**This is a pretty sad chapter... (just warning you all)... and I know some wish it wasn't so sad, but a lot has happened. This is after all, a story of how sometimes good people are handed the shitiest cards in life, but with the help of friends and family, they can overcome and grow... Bad things happen, but sometimes miracles can grow from tragedy. **

**Things will start to improve for our Rose, but that doesn't mean that the road ahead won't be rough at times... I just hope you'll all stick with me.**

**Your reviews and messages have meant a lot, thank you all so very much. Keep them coming, your thoughts keep my inspiration flowing! :-)**

**Sandy**

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**5 The roughest of days**

Sometime in the early hours of the next morning I woke to find Liss and her mum trying to wake me up, it was still fairly dark but you could just make out that the sun was trying to make an appearance. My breathing was as rapid as my heart that was thumping wildly in my chest.

"Rose darling, look at me." Mrs D said. "You're alright sweetie, okay?" I didn't understand what was going on. Why she was here? Then I realised... I remembered. The nightmare.

"I'm sorry," I whispered ashamed. "I didn't mean to wake you up." I saw movement behind her and looked to my door only to see Mr D standing there looking worried too. "Oh, Mr D, I'm so sorry..."

"You have nothing to be sorry about Rose. Are you alright?" he asked kindly. I couldn't say anything so I just gave a small nod. "Okay then, well, I'll just go... yeah..." He fidgeted uncomfortably until he turned in the direction of his bedroom.

"Do you need anything Rose?" Mrs D asked me. "Maybe something to help you sleep?" I thought about it for a few seconds, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea, but tomorrow or should I say today was going to be a big day and I wanted to make sure my head was in the right place for that...

"No thanks Mrs D, I'll be fine."

"Alright then, if you need me, I'm just down the hall okay." I nodded but I knew I wouldn't.

She said her goodbyes before heading back to bed. Liss came over and without a word, climbed into bed beside me and held me. She always knew just what I needed.

A few hours later, I sat in the chair beside my window looking out over the well manicured gardens that surrounded Lissa's home. Her mother had spent years loving and preening her beautiful Rose bushes. She even had one there that she'd planted especially for me, it was called "Sun Goddess", because she knew how much I loved the sun. It was bought after a wonderful summer that I'd spent with the family in Hawaii. I'd spent so much time out in the sun that year that by the time we got home, my normally olive skin was deep brown; something that Liss was extremely jealous over. Lissa's mom had started to call me the sun Goddess on the trip, so when she saw the rosebush with the same name on one of her many shopping trips, she just 'had to buy it' she said. She'd planted it near the one she'd got for Liss, the one named "Spirit of Peace".

A knock at my bedroom door pulled me out of my daydreams.

"Rose?"

"Come in Liss." I turned to see the sad face of my sister.

"It's time Rose." I closed my eyes as I gave a slight nod.

It had been four days since _that_ party, and now it was time to say a final farewell to Mason. Liss had said that it would be a party that would be spoken of for years to come, a party to end all parties and she was right, but for all the wrong reasons. I slowly uncurled myself from the chair and walked over to the door. When we got outside and I saw Mr D and Andre already in the car, my feet stopped. I didn't know if I could be in such a confined area with two – males. I knew they would never hurt me, but... As Liss tried to gently pull me towards the car, the more I felt like I was drowning... suffocating.

"I can't..." I whispered shaking my head almost frantically.

"The funeral?" She asked almost afraid.

I kept shaking my head without taking my eyes of the car and then she nodded in understanding. She stood for a minute thinking as she glanced between me and the car.

"What if I grab something to put around you, you know... so you can't see them? Do you think that might help?" I looked up at her and wondered about that myself. Maybe... It was worth a shot right? After letting her know that I'd give it a try, she quickly went back inside and bought out a black silk scarf that must have been her mothers. "Ready?" she asked.

"As I'll ever be..." I muttered still unsure if this would actually work.

Liss draped the scarf over my head and after taking a few deep breaths, I was able to move to the car under Lissa's guidance. Relief flooded through me, I knew I'd never forgive myself if I missed Mason's funeral because I couldn't get into a stupid friggin car. After the car had pulled away from the house, she hugged me close and actually stuck her head under the scarf with me so that we were now cheek to cheek, I felt like we were the only ones here. The ride to the church was silent, if I had to bet, I'd say that Liss somehow told them not to speak.

I felt the car pulling into what I presumed was a parking space, but Liss and I waited until we heard two car doors open and shut.

"Okay Rose," Liss said. "...it's just you, me and mom now. I'll take the scarf off now, alright?"

"What about when we get inside?" I lamented. "There's going to be so many people." As the words swirled in my brain, I berated at myself for being so weak. She thought for a few seconds before speaking again.

"I could always take it off once we're seated instead of out here. I had the front pew reserved for us so we can do it there." This sounded like a plan... I nodded and she pulled her head out leaving me under the scarf alone... "There are a lot of kids from school here; do you want to see before we get out of the car?"

I didn't answer but I pulled the scarf off myself after a few seconds of thought. I was shocked to see just how many kids from school had turned up but there were a lot of his relatives here too, well, I gathered they were because they all showed some extent of red in their hair, no matter what color they were. Strawberry blondes, brunettes of different shades all with copper highlights that glistened in the sun and a couple were exactly the same shade of red just like... my Mase. Eddie was there too of course; he looked so sad. I'd seen enough, I just needed to get inside now so I pulled the scarf back over my head and Liss and Mrs D walked either side of me into the church.

Sitting down, I took a few deep breaths before pulling the scarf away from my face. The tears I'd been able to hold in up to now started as soon as my eyes landed on the coffin in front of me and they never stopped. Memories of Mason flashed around in my head. The weeks of him building up his courage to ask me out; he was normally so confident... The relief on his face when I said yes... The shit eating smile after our first kiss... I only heard a few words here and there of the eulogies that were being said throughout the service. Even though tears streamed down my cheeks, I felt numb, the gaping hole in my chest just swallowed everything; all I could really hear was the loud rushing of blood in my ears. At some point my eyes left the coffin and made their way to the photo of my hero that looked back at me. Blue eyes...

"Rose." Lissa's voice on my left snapped me out of the trance I'd been in and as I turned my head to her I noticed that we were the only ones left in the church. I was so confused...

"Where is everyone?" I asked in a husky voice.

"The service finished a few minutes ago, we thought we'd wait till everyone was outside before getting you up." She explained.

Slowly we walked to the front of the church and watched as Mason's coffin was pushed into the rear of the hearse. His mother stood crying into his father's shoulder, Eddie was one of the pall bearers and I saw the grief that I'd see earlier was now even more pronouncedly etched into his face as he turned away from the car. Girls from school cried like they were saying goodbye to their best friend; this pissed me off. _RAGE! _Who did they think they were? They were nobody! Their crocodile tears were on show to make them look like they were somebody, but I knew better. Mason didn't die trying to protect _them_... How did they think they had any right to feel so bloody sad? That was _my_ right, _my _cross to bear, not theirs... _Bitches_!

As the crowd dwindled and cars pulled away in their slow procession my anger fluctuated, Liss pulled the scarf back over my head and we got into the car to go to the cemetery. It wasn't all that far but again the ride was in silence. We arrived after everyone else and once again Liss waited until her dad and Andre got out of the car to take the scarf off my head. I saw the concerned looks that passed between Liss and her mom over my behaviour but I just didn't have it in me today to give a shit. We got out of the car to make our way over but I could only go so far, there were so many people... Liss and I stood away from the burial site and the other mourners. I wanted to get closer but I couldn't, I wanted to hear what was being said, but I couldn't, all I could hear was crying. As the coffin started to be lowered into the ground, my eyes closed tight, unable to bare witness to this final goodbye.

"I need to be alone for a minute." I mumbled to Lissa as I turned away from the grief. Hot tears flowed thickly and freely down my face; my chin shaking uncontrollably as I tried to rein myself in. I needed to get away before I completely shattered under the guilt that was steadily eating away at me. Now, not only did I have the self made image of Mason dying to protect me, I now had the image of his mothers face crumpling in utter desolation as her baby was laid to rest. Liss didn't try to stop me nor did she try to follow. I made my way over to a small area that had some ornate wooden benches that surrounded a small but beautifully kept garden, it was peaceful here I suppose. I don't know how long I sat there with my arms wrapped tightly around my pulled up knees, but thankfully, for the first time in four days my mind was totally blank, I think it was incapable of processing anything else. Something to my right caught my eye and as I looked up, I gasped.

He was here. My Mason...

"Mase..." I whispered through my tears.

He looked at me with a sad sort of smile and then put his hand over his heart. He never spoke, his lips never moved but somehow I heard him say, 'For you'... I wanted to ask him what he meant, to stay with me, but he blew me a kiss as he slowly faded away. I jumped out of my seat as a hand touched my shoulder.

"Sorry... I called out to you, but you didn't hear me." Liss said apologetically. I glanced back to where I thought I'd seen Mason only to find and empty space. Was I losing my mind...?

"It's alright Liss." I said as my heart started to settle. I looked behind her and saw that everyone was walking away from the gravesite and were getting into their cars. Lissa's family were already in their car, so I walked over to my best friend and hugged her in thanks for strength she'd given me today.

"Mia said she'd come over tomorrow." She informed me.

"She was here?" I asked as we left the small garden and started to walk back to the car.

"Yeah, she was sitting on the other side of Mom at the church. You were a little out of it... she understood." Soon enough the scarf covered my view once again and gave me the false sense of solitude. Somewhere on the trip home, I fell asleep. The next thing I knew, I was waking up with a start in my room; Lissa asleep beside me. She must not have been in too deep a sleep because as soon as I moved her eyes popped open.

"Hey there sleepy head." She said with a smile.

"Hey. How did I...? On second thoughts, don't tell me." Just the thought of her dad carrying me up here was making me feel all gross. I looked over to my bedside table and saw that it was just after 1pm and almost on cue, my stomach grumbled.

"How about we go get something to eat." Liss suggested with a slight giggle.

"Sounds good." There was no use in arguing. Even though I was hungry, the thought of food still made me feel ill.

We went downstairs and my eyes immediately roamed the living areas for signs of the men that lived here, but they were nowhere to be seen. As we got closer to the kitchen, I could not only smell food cooking, but I could hear Mrs D clanging around in there.

"Hey there darling, how are you feeling? Hungry?" She asked as we sat on the stools at the breakfast bar.

"Yes she is," Lissa answered before I could deny it. "Her stomach was grumbling as soon as her eyes were open."

"Snitch..." I muttered under my breath. Liss softly chuckled and we watched her mom pull a warm chicken Caesar salad together, she knew it was one of my favourites. I spied a stack of chocolate donuts under the glass dome of a cake stand that sat at the end of the bench. Obviously Mrs D had noticed my declining appetite and was putting out all the stops to bring it back... After she put a plate of the delicious looking salad down in front of Liss and me, Mrs D started to speak.

"Rose?" I looked up to see a concerned look on her face. "I know this may not be the perfect time to talk about this, but I just want you to think about what I'm about to say alright?"

"Okay..." I said a little worried.

"I can understand your aversion to being in close proximity to males at the moment, especially those who you don't know, but I think you need to go see that lady that your doctor recommended to you." I was about to say something but she raised her hand up to stop me before continuing. "I just know that the longer these things get left untreated, the longer they can take to get rectified. I can hear your nightmares darling, I know they upset you, especially the one this morning but I feel that you really need to talk to someone before this '_hill'_ becomes a mountain."

"She's right Rose." Liss said gently. "You can't go around with a scarf on your head for much longer."

I knew they were right but I was feeling a little irritated with them for some reason, but that was overshadowed by the embarrassment that I felt over the fact that I had to go to such extremes to go to Mason's funeral. I couldn't even stand with everyone else to pay my last respects at the gravesite of someone who meant so much to me, who died for me. I knew I had to be stronger than this and I internally berated myself once again for being so weak.

"Alright, I'll call her." Mrs D smiled and patted my hand before turning around to make herself a cup of coffee.

Later that afternoon, I sat in Mr D's office listening to the ringing of the phone against my ear.

"Good Afternoon," Came a woman's voice down the line. "This is Dr Markov's office, how can I help you?"

"Oh, Hi. Ah, I'd like to make an appointment to see the doctor if I can."

"Certainly, have you been here before?"

"No."

"Okay, your name?" I gave the receptionist all my particulars and was lucky enough to get myself an appointment for early tomorrow morning. Apparently she had a cancellation. That night Liss and I spent the evening in her room watching movies and talking about the funeral. I'd missed it all in my semi-comatose state and was surprised by the number of kids from school who stood up to speak about him and what his friendship had meant to them. He really was well liked. Apparently, his dad got up and spoke of his last act of selflessness and how it epitomised everything that was Mason, always protecting those who needed it without a second thought. He'd looked my way as he'd said this and Liss said that a tear fell from his eyes when he'd seen the state I was in.

A lot more tears were shed while she told me of the service.

The next day, Mrs D drove me and Liss to the hospital to see Dr Markov. I found myself sitting in an empty room, looking at a scenery painting on the wall behind her desk while waiting for her to arrive. Soon the door opened to reveal a tall, model looking woman. She was in her early thirties I'd say, with strawberry blonde hair and absolutely stunning.

"Good Morning Rosemarie, my name is Dr Markov but you can call me Oksana."

WOW... what is it with this hospital and all the Russians...?

"Hi, pleased to meet you, but call me Rose."

"Okay then Rose." She smiled as she sat across from me. "What made you come to see me this morning?" I'm not normally so forward with people, but I knew that for me to overcome the problems I was having, I needed to be truthful. This really was going against the grain for me but I needed this to be strong again. It was the least I could do for the sacrifice Mason made.

For the next 45 minutes, Oksana sat patiently as I spoke of the party, Mason's death and my new inability to come within 30 feet of any male. I told her about the panic attacks in the hospital and outside my house and she explained why my mind was reacting the way it was. I liked her a lot, but at times... when she spoke; it was like she was inside my head; her fingers tickling away into the deep recesses of my mind. It was like she could tell what I was thinking and feeling without me having to say the words. That spooked me a little let me tell ya, but I figured that would only help me because if she could do all of that, then she'd know how to fix me. Right?

She also told me of a few exercises that I could do to help relieve some of my anxiety and how to handle myself if I got into a situation where I felt an attack coming on. I did feel a lot better after talking to her, but she told me that what I was experiencing was not something that was going to be easy to get over. Not something that would disappear after one conversation. So, I walked out of that first session with more reading material and a weekly Thursday morning session with her.

Liss and Mrs D were still in the waiting room and stood up as the Doctor walked me out. I went to pay but found that Mrs D had already taken care of it.

"No arguing Rose. You're like a daughter to me and I want to help."

I wasn't going to argue here in front of strangers, but I was going to call my father when we got home. I wasn't about to let him get away with shirking his responsibility as a father yet again. I know I was legally an adult now, but this was something he and my mother should be doing for me, not Mr & Mrs D.

As we walked through the front lobby of the hospital, I smiled as I saw Olena walking towards me pushing an empty wheelchair.

"Rose, how good to see you again." She said with a huge smile on her face. "Are you okay?" I supposed that she was worried why I was back here.

"Hi Olena, yeah I'm good. I just come from an appointment with Dr Markov."

"That's great Rose." Olena said. "I'm very happy that you decided to speak with her. She's a _very_ good doctor, she knows her stuff."

"Um, Olena, you remember my best friend Lissa and this is her mom Mrs D?" Olena and Lissa's mom laughed at my reference to her but hey, that's who she is to me.

"Hi Olena, just call me Amy." Lissa's mom said as they shook hands. An almost knowing look between the two women but now was not the time or the place to ask them what was going on.

"How are the panic attacks going Rose, any easier?" Olena asked.

"Not really." I said shrugging my shoulder.

"Hey, I've been thinking about you a lot since you came in and I thought about something that might help you. One of the nurses here has been taking a martial arts class not far from here. She said that after only the first few classes, she felt so much more confident and that it wouldn't take her long before she'd be able to 'kick ass'..."

I let out a slight giggle at hearing this _very _motherly woman say the words 'kick ass'. The thought of being able to defend myself wasn't really something that had every gone through my mind, but suddenly it was a rather pleasant thought.

"Did she say where this place was?" I asked.

"Yeah, she did actually." She went over to the nurse's station and wrote down the name of the place the other nurse goes to. "Apparently the woman who teaches the class is, in Sydney's words, 'One scary woman!'. Syd said that she wouldn't like to see what would be left of anyone who tried to take her on."

The thought of never being a victim again was making me feel more alive than I'd felt for nearly a week.

After saying our goodbyes and promises to keep in touch, we finally made our way back to Lissa's house. Mr D was at work and Andre had decided to go spend some time next door at his friend Adrian's place. Personally, Adrian annoyed the hell out of me, always hitting on me any chance he could get. Andre had told him what had happened and told him to lay off and leave me the hell alone for a while; so far he'd done as he'd been asked. I hated the fact that my presence had more or less made Andre leave his home, but I couldn't help but be relieved that he was no longer here. Andre and I had always had such a great friendship. He was as much my brother as Liss was my sister, so this distance I now felt in his company was hurting us both. He understood and told me not to worry about it, that when I felt better, he'd be waiting with open arms. Whoever coined the phrase 'blood is thicker than water' obviously hadn't met mine and Lissa's families; in my case water was definitely thicker than blood...

I hadn't been able to speak to my father about paying for the therapy yet as he'd gone to California for a few days business, but when I spoke to him on his cell he said he'd see me when he got back on Monday.

The next couple of days were spent with Mia and Lissa trying to do as much as they could think of to take my mind of my problems. The days were great, but at night when I was alone in the darkness of my room with no-one and nothing to alter the course of my thoughts, everything came flooding back. My dreams... no, nightmares never really changed. There was nothing specific, no images other than hands reaching towards me that I could ever recall; it was more feelings that stirred in my mind and body so when I woke up covered in sweat and panting I felt disturbed to say the least. For hours and hours following said nightmares, I'd feel like someone was watching me, I was slowly becoming more and more paranoid every day, and I hated it.

Hopefully the defence class I was going to be taking tonight would give me something that would calm my feelings of helplessness.


	7. Chapter 6 Fight or Die Trying

**Okay, another chapter! :-) Things are moving along, I'll be interested to hear what you think by the end of this chapter... You'll know what I mean when you read it! hehehe I'm trying to make the chapters longer, you should enjoy chapter 8... it's nearly 6000 words! It could be more by the time it gets put up. I have a habit of adding things before uploading! LOL **

**Anyway, I hope you like this one and let me know. I have so many people reading this story, yet so few are actually reviewing. I know it seems a little slow going atm, but trust me, as all the players in this story come together, things will speed up and what has happened can't be rectified in a few chapters. You should all know me by now, I'm long winded! hehehehe **

**Oh, btw... Is there anyone who would like to beta this story for me? If you can, let me know.**

**On with the show hey!**

* * *

**6. Fight or die trying.**

As promised, my father called bright and early Monday morning after he got home. I didn't know how he'd feel about paying for my therapy, but I didn't think it was the responsibility of Lissa's parent to provide it, that's for sure. He took it better than I thought he would, but then again, I did lay on the guilt trip rather thick.

"I know I'm eighteen dad, you don't have to remind me. You're never here, Mom may as well not be, her job has always meant more to her than I have. I've spent my whole life being raised by other people, but that doesn't mean that they shoulder the responsibility of paying for my medical expenses." There was a few moments of silence before he stated talking again.

"I know you haven't had it easy little girl, but don't talk like you know everything; you don't."

"Oh come on old man, tell me one time that you've ever been there for me, for anything. Even when I was attacked... where were you? Where was mom? Oh yeah, neither of you were here... again."

"Fine..." he said after a deep sigh, "...you've proven your point Rosemarie. How much are the sessions?" This is going to be the sticky part...

"Well, they aren't cheap, Dr Markov's the best around and I feel comfortable with her..."

"Yeah, yeah, just spit it out Rose." He grumbled.

"It's $275 an hour."

Silence...

"Fine... Just don't tell your mother how much it's costing alright. That's an argument that I don't need to have right now." I was a little ticked off that my mother would even be concerned about the cost, but it didn't really surprise me. She never gave me anything growing up, so why would she start now.

"How much do I say it costs if she asks?" I asked him.

"I doubt she will, but if she does, just tell her $120 a session." Before ending our conversation he said he'd set up a credit card account for me so that I could pay with that from now on. My father is nothing if not proactive, by two that afternoon, he was standing at the Dragomir's front door handing Liss all the relevant information and letting me know that I should expect the card in the mail in a couple of days.

"Look after yourself Rose." He said before turning to leave. He only got a few steps before turning back. "Oh by the way, here's another card." My forehead crumpled in confusion as I looked at the card he handed to Liss. "It's hooked up to one of my accounts, use it for whatever you need, clothes, food, if you want to go out or something. There's plenty in there alright? Thank your parents for me please Lissa, for looking after Rose."

"I will..." she replied.

"Thanks old man." I said from the doorway. He gave a quick nod before gracefully walking back to his car. For such a tall man, he was surprisingly light on his feet.

"Wow..." Liss said as we watched him drive away. "I guess he's not such a snake after all." I gave a half smile as errant thoughts flittered through my brain. Thoughts of a mother who has never been there for me even though she's been within reaching distance my whole life. And thoughts of a father who has also never been there – but at the moment, I felt closer to him than my mother. It wasn't the money that he'd just given to me, it was fact that he'd shown me by his actions that he cared... Something my mother has never done.

All afternoon, Lissa hadn't let up about the fact that if she damaged her hands or nails in any way, shape or form, she'd hold me personally responsible. I was actually surprised to see Mia sport a new 'short' look with her false nails when she came to pick us up.

"The French manicured look is all the rage now apparently..." she said with a smile.

"I can't believe you cut off your nails Mia..." Liss said in shock.

"Yeah well, it only takes half an hour to get them long again Liss, and besides, if I hit something the wrong way I'll end up peeling the nail completely off and that would be _extremely_ painful..."

Liss looked down at her half inch nails in horror and she looked paler and paler by the second.

"Mia, stop teasing her. That won't happen Liss; she's only stirring you up..." I glared at Mia to shut her mouth before Liss passed out in shock but all she could do was laugh, she loved getting under Lissa's skin and jumped on every chance she could get.

At 6:30pm, Mia, Liss and I stood at the doorway of the large studio. It was large and roomy, which was good. It was all white walls and polished floorboards, but I didn't know if I should be thankful or scared when I saw the compressed foam matting on top of the floorboards. All sorts of equipment lined the walls, large and small plastic covered foam blocks, weird gloves that looked like boxing gloves only flat, long punching bags that hung from the ceiling... amongst other things. I let out the breath I'd been holding when to my pleasure, I only saw women inside.

I knew that Liss was only here for support, I knew she had no interest in learning how to fight; Mia on the other hand had thought it sounded like fun, she had spunk and even though she was a little waif of a thing, she at least had the inclination to give it a try.

This morning Mrs D was kind enough to go to the studio for us and pick up our paper work and Tae Kwon Do uniforms. We'd tried to pronounce some of the words but all three of us came up with different versions of most words. I had no idea why we needed to know how to count in Korean though. It still made me giggle when I saw the look of horror pass over Lissa's face as she held up the pants in front of her; they had a crutch that would reach halfway to her knees.

"_I'm not wearing these!" She screeched. "They're hideous! They look like something out of the Eighties and a bad representation at that... and you know how much I hate that look."_

"_Liss, they're made like this to give you room to kick your legs up into the air."_

"_You never told me there'd be kicking Rose." She said horrified._

"_Punching too Liss." I teased, her eyes widened even more as she looked down at her manicured hands. She was such a princess._

Only a few minutes after we picked a spot at the back of the room, an older woman roughly in her mid to late fifties walked in. She thin yet I could tell she was as solid as a rock, I couldn't help but think that she probably would have been spectacularly stunning when she was younger, but she was obviously _not_ a girly girl. Her light brown hair was in a bob cut and I suddenly saw what Olena meant by 'tough' when she walked to the front of the class. She just radiated the word.

"Alright ladies, everyone fan out into a circle please." She called out in a friendly but clipped tone. "As most of you know, my name is Alberta Peters and tonight's class is self defence in the art of Tae Kwon Do. We have a few new people here so we'll run through some of the basic moves after our warm up."

We started off stretching out our leg muscles, lunging forwards and stretching the hamstring of the other leg. When she started taking us through stretches for our ankles I was surprised, I'd never thought about stretching ankles before.

I had to work hard to contain my amusement watching Lissa; I could tell she was embarrassed to be doing some of the moves. Mia was pretty good, but Liss... she was so un-co, I couldn't believe it... well, yeah I could. That was the reason we stopped ballet lessons as kids, she just couldn't do it. I thought she'd improved since then as she'd become fairly graceful in her movements. Apparently not!

After the legs stretches, we moved onto the arms and back muscles. The warm up that had us in fits of laughter though was one where we had to squat down on the balls of our feet, knees spread apart, then we had to put our hands on the ground with our elbows pushed hard against the inside of our knees. That part was fine but when Alberta told us to tilt forward and lift our feet off the ground so that we were balancing on our hands... well... I landed in a crumpled, giggling heap when Liss tilted a little too far forward and face planted into the mats. She was _not_ impressed. Mia followed her example simply because of the hilarity of seeing Liss crash and burn was too much for her to contain. For at least another ten minutes I kept snickering under my breath as I pictured Lissa's embarrassment.

After that, we had to split into four groups, one group in each corner of the room. Pairing up with the group diagonally across from us, we had to do a series of running exercises, flicking our feet forward and backwards as we ran; while making sure we didn't collide with people from the other groups. Liss didn't quite manage this; she was too intent on what she was doing and ran straight into one of the other women. The worst exercise was where we had to frog jump continuously across the floor... Yeah, squatting right down to the ground and then leaping forward and then back down again... talk about _burning_ leg muscles.

After this workout, she showed us how to get into the 'horse stance'. We all stood in a line face to face with a partner, our feet were spread about three feet apart and we had to squat down like we were sitting on a chair so that our knees almost touched our partners. Then lifting our hands up, palms facing each other, we had to slap hands to try and knock each other off balance. _That_ was fun. I thought Liss had more balance than she did. Mia on the other hand was a little harder to push over.

"Hi there ladies." Alberta spoke from beside me. I hadn't noticed that she'd left her position up front and made her way over to us. "I thought I'd just come over and introduce myself properly and see what you hope to gain from these classes."

"Oh, ah..." I muttered. _Where do I start?_

"We're here for Rose's support." Mia blurted out. "She's recovering from a... bad experience and needs some help getting over some... issues."

Couldn't have said it better myself... By Alberta's face she had an idea what Mia had implied.

"Oh, okay then. Well Rose, these classes will certainly be able to help, but you need to practice and work hard to improve. I take these classes twice a week, but you can take as many classes during the week with other instructors as you feel you need. Just let me know if I can help at all."

"Thanks Alberta, I will." She was very forthright and to the point, but I instantly liked her.

She turned away and went over to the woman next to us and helped correct some of her movements. When they greeted one another, I heard that her name was Sydney, probably the Sydney that worked with Olena.

The next forty-five minutes were hell on earth. I could now feel muscles that I never knew I even had, which surprised me because I didn't think that what we'd done was all that complex. Thinking back now, I suspect it was all the leg lunges and holding my arms out for long periods of time that were the killers.

"I can't move..." Lissa whined as she lay flat out on the mats at the end of the class.

"I'm dying..." Mia moaned.

"Oh, come on you wimps. It's not that bad." It was really, but I couldn't let them see that I was hurting too.

"Alright ladies," Alberta said loudly to the class, "...now remember to walk out any soreness to prevent cramping and for the new ladies, rubbing some Aloe Vera liniment into your muscles probably wouldn't go astray."

I shook my head at my moaning friends and thought I'd say hello to the woman beside us.

"Hi, my name's Rose." I introduced myself.

"Hi Rose, I'm Sydney."

"Hey, I know you don't know me, but are you a nurse?" She was a little surprised but her look quickly turned curious as to how I knew that. "I was told about this place from Olena, she told me that you came here and it helped you."

"Oh yeah, she's told me a lot about you. She said that she'd spoken to you about me coming here. Did you enjoy it?"

"Let me get back to you about that..." I said rubbing my sore legs. She laughed in agreement and she told me that the first two days after her first class were the worst, but now she never got sore. So that was something to look forward to I suppose.

We said our goodbyes and an unsure 'thanks for a good workout' to Alberta, then with legs made completely of jello we finally made it to Mia's car. It was with a rather large dash of amusement on my part that as she drove us home, she would moan every time she put her foot on the clutch pedal.

"Suck it up Doll Girl, you wanted a manual..." The scowl she gave me in the rear view mirror was a little better than the last one she gave me, but all I could do was giggle.

"I'm not going to be able to walk tomorrow, you know that right Rose." She complained.

"Yeah Mia, I know. If it's any consolation, I don't think any of us will be walking tomorrow. But you heard Alberta, if we don't move around we'll cramp up and that'll be worse. So don't just lie around when you get home."

The next day... yeah! Pain was a pretty good word to describe what we were feeling. Mrs D kept laughing as we hobbled around the house, moaning with each step. She nearly fell over laughing at the sight of us coming down the staircase for breakfast. After only three steps, Liss gave up and ended up going down on her butt. She said we walked like babies learning to walk, which was somewhat true in an odd way.

Before lunch I decided to go for a walk to stretch out my sore muscles, I tried to get Liss to come with me after I got changed into my bike pants and T-shirt hoodie but the glare I got told me in no uncertain terms that she was _not _joining me. I think I was in trouble...

The walk did me good, but when I finally took the time to look at my surroundings, I found myself at our local business centre. There were quite a few shops here, but the local diner was the 'teenagers' haunt; the oldies would go to the local restaurant. I looked at my watch and noticed I'd been walking for nearly two hours and I was thirsty so I went into the diner to grab a bottle of water. I was pleased to see that it was more or less empty. The floor to ceiling windows on the right side of the building allowed the sunlight in to counter all the dark wood in here. Plush, private booths lined the windows and far wall, the serving counter was to the left and tables were in-between. There were a few girls from school that I recognised in one booth and at another sat a strange guy and girl sitting opposite one another; I couldn't see his face as he had his elbows on the table holding his face in his hands. They were sitting far enough away from me for his presence not to creep me out, but I really wanted to see his face.

"Hi Rose." Celeste greeted me with her normal smile. She was quite a few years older than me; she'd had big plans of leaving for the city after she left school but those plans went out the window when her mother fell ill and she stayed home to care for her. Now, she was stuck here.

"Hi Celeste."

"I'm sorry about Mason." I cringed when she said his name and my mood plunged once again. Seeing my discomfort, she changed the direction of our conversation. "I'm sorry sweetie... What can I get you?"

"Ah, just a bottle of water thanks." She nodded and turned back to the fridge full of drinks behind the counter. As she turned back around to hand me the water, I heard a loud laugh. I turned to where the people here were sitting and my breath caught in my throat. The owner of the laugh was the guy who had his head in his hands when I first walked in, but now I could see his face... and he was absolutely gorgeous. I quickly looked away when he happened to look up and find me staring at him. I hastily handed her a ten dollar note and waited for the change.

"Do you have any plans for college Rose?" Celeste asked.

"Ah, I was going to UW, but I thought I'd defer for a year. Maybe travel for a while." I had no intentions of travelling, but the thoughts of being around all those guys on campus made my stomach churn. Mrs D. had Dr Markov write a letter to the dean explaining why I needed to have my placement deferred.

"Oh, well that should be fun for you." Everyone knew of Celeste's thoughts on getting a college degree and I could hear the clipped tone in her voice. Even though she didn't regret staying with her mom when she needed her, everyone knew that Celeste hated the fact that her mother's illness had ploughed through the money intended for her college education. "Don't forget to send me postcards." She said with a wave as she walked back into the kitchen. Then with one last glance at the guy in the last booth; I walked out of the diner and made my way back home.

It was now a week since Mason's funeral and I acknowledged the day by spending it in bed. I knew this was not helping me in any way, but I just didn't have the inclination to be any different. My next appointment with Oksana was tomorrow, so for now, I just felt like wallowing for one more day... After this, I would be trying to rebuild my shattered life and emotions, so today was mine to spend as I saw fit. Liss and Mia came upstairs just before lunch to see if I wanted to join them downstairs but I just shook my head as I stared out the window. Not being ones to ever take a hint, they just came up with their own compromise and brought lunch up to me. All three of us sat cross-legged on my bed and as they chatted between themselves over mundane things while I picked at the sandwich they'd brought up for me. After about an hour, they finally left me to my wallowing and didn't come back up until dinner time.

The next morning, I opened my puffy red eyes and took a deep breath. I had to pull myself out of this... whatever _'this'_ was that I was allowing myself to fall into. I got up and went straight into the shower. It made me feel slightly better and when I walked into the kitchen, the smile I had on my face was not overly forced.

"Morning Sweetie." Mrs D greeted me as she hugged me tight.

"Morning."

"Have your breakfast and then we'll get going. I've got pancakes, bacon, eggs... and yes Rose, I've got your donuts too."

"You're the best Mrs D... you know that right?" I said smiling.

"Yeah, I know..." she said acting all high and mighty. "But someone's got to do it, right..?"

The ride to the hospital was, in a word; careful. Today was just Mrs D and myself because I'd told Liss to go out with Mia for the day. She'd been by my side since all this shit had hit the proverbial fan and I thought she deserved to breathe some non-Rose air for a while and decompress, and no-one can decompress a person like Mia. I knew Mrs D thought I shouldn't have hidden myself away yesterday and I could see she wanted to say as much, but she was too nice a lady and I think she knew that I just needed to cry... even if it was an all day session.

Oksana was as exquisite as she was last week and once she sat down and looked me straight in the eyes, I got that feeling again like she was looking straight into my head.

"Hi Rose, how have things been this week?"

"Oh, you know..." I looked down and started to pick at my fingernails. When she didn't say anything, I looked up to see she was waiting for me to continue. "Ah, I saw Olena on the way out after our last visit and she told me about one of her nurse friends taking a martial arts class. So my friends and I took the first class last Monday night and I have another class tomorrow night."

"Well, that's good. How did it go?"

"Good... Well, it's a wonder I'm walking today really, my legs have been less than cooperative the last two days, not to mention my aching arms..." She gave a little snort of amusement at my comment before speaking.

"What do you hope to get out of these classes?" Alberta asked the same thing...

"Not sure really, maybe gain a little self confidence. You know, that one day I can... look after myself." I was about to say 'defend myself', but changed my mind, don't know why...

"Well, I must say that I'm pleased that you're putting yourself out there, but just be careful. Sometimes, even those people who are very good at these sports can be caught off-guard when they place too much faith in their abilities. It's one thing to have confidence in yourself but it's another to think that you are invincible because you know how to fight. That said, I think it's wonderful that you're doing this. I think it will be good for you."

I felt more relieved knowing that she felt like that. "Now..." she continued, "...what else has been happening?"

I spoke about yesterday, how I felt like I needed to just... feel. It had been a week since the funeral and I just needed to reflect. Nothing much had changed since that life altering party, other than the gaping hole in my chest that kept getting bigger and the number of tears that I still cried daily. The nightmares didn't change either.

"How people grieve is a very personal thing Rose." Oksana said pulling me out of my reverie. No two people do it in the same way or to the same time frame. I can't tell you how long to mourn for or how long before you overcome your obstacles, but I can show you methods on how to cope with everything. I can accompany you on your journey, but just know that you will deal with it at your own pace and you will get through this and I will be here every step of the way to help steer you on the right course."

A tear fell at her words. She knew how to say the words that I needed to hear. To have her tell me that my feelings weren't stupid, that she wasn't going to rush me felt... liberating. I didn't know how I could feel so liberated while still feeling so stifled... But I had a feeling that this woman was the light at the end of the very long tunnel that I was only just beginning to travel. Soon our session was over and just like last time, I felt better as I walked out of her office. I had the feeling that one more brick of the wall that the consequences of the party had erected had been taken down, hopefully all the other bricks would soon follow.

Friday went by pretty uneventful which was a miracle considering that Mia and Liss took me out shopping. I don't know why I agreed to go really as I spent the whole time on tender-hooks, worried that some random guy was going to get too close. Instead of going to the eatery in the mall, the girls took me to a lake close to home where we sat around eating our Macca's burgers. After lunch we went to Mia's and watched Kill Bill on DVD, she thought it was an appropriate movie to watch. She had us in fits of laughter as she and did a rather woeful display of trying to copy Uma Thurman's moves.

My Friday night martial arts lesson didn't leave me quite so sore the next day, sore...but not as much as the last time so that was a bonus. Alberta was an excellent instructor; she was even able to get Liss to master some moves.

The weekend was spent either watching more movies or out by the pool. On Sunday afternoon as I layed on my towel, face turned up to the sun, I'd felt more peaceful than I had for some time. The rays of the sun were like medicine to me. I smiled as I thought how the 'Sun Goddess' in me was trying to claw her way out.

Monday night's class went well, right up to the point where Alberta said that she wouldn't be taking the classes for a little while. Apparently her father had fallen ill and she needed to go help her mom, but she assured us that she would make sure that her replacement was the best. I wasn't sure what to think of this, I felt comfortable with Alberta, I only hoped that she remembered about my...problem, and didn't get a guy to fill in for her.

So it was with a little trepidation that I went to the following Friday nights Tae Kwon Do lesson. I prayed that I would feel as comfortable with the new instructor as I did with Alberta. I'd relayed my reservations to Oksana when we met the day before, I was so nervous that I'd actually thought about not going back but she helped calm my nerves and ran through some of the relaxation techniques that she'd taught me.

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**So... what did you all think? Anyone pick up the little crumbs of info here?  
Reviews mean LURVE... Lurve means faster updates... hehehe Click on the words below... You know ya wanna!**


	8. Chapter 7 Heart Fail

**Hi Again... I wasn't sure about putting this chapter up right now because I would think that people would have their noses stuck in a certain book! ;-)  
But I thought... why not! hehehe I have read Last Sacrifice and I thought it was brilliant. Richelle is a master with all of her twists and turns... I can't wait to read the spin off series.**

**Thank you all for such an amazing response to the last chapter. I'm so glad that you're liking where the story is heading. A few more chapters and Rose will be showing more of her true self... So stick with me.**

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter... remember, let me know what you think!**

**Sandy**

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**7. Heart Fail...**

As soon as we walked into the studio on Friday night, I could see Sydney was already here setting up; I really liked her even though she was a few years older than us. She was a little stand-offish when we first met, which I thought was odd, her being a nurse and all. I later found out that she went into that field simply because her parents were both nurses and she felt obligated to follow in their 'family business' so to speak; she on the other hand really wanted to go into chemistry. So, that's what she was doing now... While working part-time shifts at the hospital, she was also working towards her degree to become a pharmacist.

"Hi Sydney." I greeted.

"Hey Rose, Liss, Mia... I wonder who Alberta got to take over the classes."

"Probably some old guy who looks like he'd break in a strong wind but will actually kick our asses into next week!" Mia offered.

Great! Now I have that picture in my head, you know, Pat Morita doing his best Crane stance and going all ninja warrior on us. I couldn't help but snicker at the following images of Lissa and Mia in the same poses.

My mind was off in its own little world but I soon became aware of the gasps to my left. I looked at my friends to see their tongues hanging out of their heads...

"Yes...!" Sydney whispered under her breath to my right. "He's back..."

"Oh crap, we are so dead..." Lissa whined. I followed her line of sight only to have my jaw drop. Walking across the front of the class was a huge chunk of man. I mean he was _enormous_... Not only really, really tall but built like a tank! No, like a friggin air craft carrier! As he turned to face the class I thought I was seeing things, I recognised him as the guy from the diner. He didn't look this big that day, but then again I was too gobsmacked with his face to notice anything else. He had his brown hair pulled back at the nape of his neck. That in turn led my eyes down the black lined V-neck of his shirt... the V-neck that showed just enough of his smooth, hairless chest to render me dumb. I blinked rapidly as this God started talking.

"Good Evening Class." _Oh crap... he's even got an accent._ "As most of you already know, Alberta had a family matter come up and she asked me to take over her classes while she is away. I recognise some faces here, others I do not." His eyes stopped on me for a few seconds before continuing to scan the others here. "My name is Dimitri and I'm a 6th Dan black belt instructor. I'll come around during the class and catch up with those I haven't seen for a while and hopefully get to meet those who are new here."

I knew from Adrian's parents that his accent was Russian. What is it with this town all the bloody Russians...? His voice was strong and confident but felt like warm honey in my ears... I don't really know what _that_ would actually feel like, but it was as good a description as any. I also have no idea what 6th whatever he said meant but... _Oh crap!_ Suddenly my heart started beating faster in realisation... _Oh God..._ _If he comes near me I'm going to freak out..._ _shit, shit, shit! _And even in my screwed up brain, I still didn't want to do that in front of _him..._

"Hey Rose..." Mia whispered from beside me. "He has an accent!" The wiggle of her eyebrows earned her an elbow to the ribs from Lissa... They both knew my 'thing' I had with guys with accents.

"Okay, let's start with our warming up exercises; everyone in a circle." I made sure that we were the furtherest away from him and before we got started he stood tall and bowed to the class. I tried to focus as we went through the stretches and basic moves but I was hyper-aware of his presence. As long as he stayed where he was... everything was good, right? Yeah, good...

"What's this guy like Sydney?" Mia asked. "Is he as good as Alberta?"

"Well, he's taken two classes since I started and he is a God in every way. Looks, body, ability, you name it. Alberta actually taught him everything he knows. He's a little anti-social from what I can tell, doesn't really mingle, but who cares really when we get to perv on that for a whole hour."

That comment was quite comical coming from her, but she did have a good point... I on the other hand thought that his anti-social behaviour was good thing; hopefully that means he won't come over for a chat.

"Alright everyone, I'd like you all to pair up for some kicking exercises. We'll be working on the front kicks and then the side kicks. Work out who will be kicking first, then the other person, go grab a block pad." I still couldn't believe it was him, what are the chances... I wonder if that woman who was with him in the diner was his significant other, I'd never seen her around here either.

"Earth to Rose..." I looked back to Liss and she was looking at me like I'd grown another head or something.

"I'm here... Gees... Impatient much?" I snapped.

She narrowed her eyes in thought before answering me. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, sorry, I'm just tired I guess." I quickly glanced up to see that the 'God in human form' was with a couple of ladies correcting their movements.

"Alright, Julie here is going to partner with me so that I can show you all what to do." I threw _Julie_ a few daggers when he said she would partner him, but instantly felt stupid considering he's older and wouldn't be interested in someone like me... oh and the fact that the male of our species send me into panic attacks when they come anywhere near me. Watching his body move was... nice. What I wouldn't give to see him work out in a pair of shorts... and only shorts!

_Argh... what's wrong with you Rose? Get your mind out of the gutter. Mason..._

"Okay..." Liss said wearily, pulling me out of my inner banter. "...you want to kick first?" I nodded in reply so she went and picked up one of the big blue block pads. I noticed that Mia and Sydney had paired up too, that should be interesting. I couldn't help but grin as Liss walked back to me.

"What?" She asked wearily.

"It's nearly as big as you Liss. Are you sure you're strong enough to hold it up?"

"Oh, you're hilarious..." she said dryly. "Come on then Miss Jackie Chan, do your best." I scoffed at her not so bad attempt of a challenge. I got into the back stance that Alberta showed us and got ready to start with the forward kicks.

"Brace yourself baby..." I said smugly. I lifted my leg, bent at the knee and then WHAM! Flicking my foot out, I made easy contact with the pad Liss was holding.

"_Shit_ Rose...!" Liss said as she staggered back. "Where did _that_ come from?" I was really enjoying these classes and I'd been practicing my moves at night when I couldn't sleep. At first I didn't know how I'd go, but now, if I'd be strong enough – good enough... But with each class I'd taken, I felt my confidence grow. We did this for the next few minutes before 'God', otherwise known as Dimitri, told us to start on our side kicks. Soon it was time to switch and I took over the block pad.

"Okay Liss, put a little more _umpf_ into it this time alright?"

"I did last time..."

"No you didn't." I giggled as she stuck her tongue out at me then braced for her kicks. She wasn't too bad at it, but she still kicked like a girl... After a few more half-assed kicks I narrowed my eyes at her. "Oh, come on Liss, you can do better than this."

"I'm trying Rose." She said a little indignantly.

"No you're not. You're too far away or something."

"No, I'm not. If I get any closer I'll be too close and won't be able to kick at all." I was about to argue some more but I didn't get the chance. Suddenly many things happened all at once.

He happened, she happened and last but not least, I happened.

"Ladies..." I heard _him _say behind me. I gasped and froze, but Liss... well, how is she supposed to watch where her kick is going to land when she isn't looking at where she is kicking? Her eyes and head spun to look over my right shoulder and at the same time, her foot that was in mid flight connected with my face! Yeah...

I suppose _I_ didn't help matters. I sort of lost the plot a little at his sudden arrival and dropped the big thick block of foam that is designed to stop this very scenario from ever happening. My head flung backwards with the force and I soon found myself on my ass. Yeah I know... Liss actually put some force behind her kick _this _time. I didn't think she had it in her.

"Oh SHIT, Rose!" She yelled out. She ran to me and dropped to her knees beside me, her hands and my hands went to my cheekbone at almost the same time. "I'm so sorry Rose..."

"It's alright Liss..." I said. Stars danced behind my closed eyelids.

"Rose, are you..?" His voice was right beside me... _Shit... don't freak out, don't freak out, don't freak out... _Suddenly, the pain in my face wasn't hurting so much... I was acutely aware that I had one too many hands touching me. I knew Liss didn't have three hands... that meant only one thing; _his_ hand was on my shoulder, the shoulder that I had pins and needles in.

"Don't touch her." Liss said quickly in a slightly panicked voice beside me. Suddenly the weight on my right shoulder was gone... and once it was, the pins and needles was gone too. It was weird... I felt an urge, a pull to reach out and get the feeling back but at the same time I felt myself inching closer to Liss. I was scared... not of him though for some strange reason. Scared of this pull I just felt. What did it mean? It's only been three weeks since I lost Mason, why would I be feeling like I am? Thinking what I am? _I'm so confused... I'm such a bad girlfriend_.

"It's alright Rose." Liss said softly, my breathing hitched... I wasn't sure if he'd moved away, but somehow I was sure he hadn't. It was like I could feel his presence still on my right hand side.

"I need to look at her cheek." He said.

_Yup... still here_.

"No... please. Sydney?" I heard Liss call above me.

"It's alright Dimitri, I'm a nurse." I hadn't opened my eyes yet, I couldn't, but I did relax somewhat at hearing Sydney's voice. "Can you open your eyes Rose? It's alright, he's backed off." A few seconds later I opened my eyes, still leaning against Liss and saw _him_ standing behind Sydney with a worried look on his face. "Let me have a look."

"I'm alright Sydney." I winced a bit as she felt around my cheek bone but I couldn't seem to tear my eyes away from his. They were so intense.

_Shit, he's good looking._

"I don't think anything is broken, but it would probably be a good idea to get an x-ray just to be sure." Just then one of the other ladies from the class walked up to us with an ice pack and gave it to Dimitri. He took it from her and leant forward with it in his hand... All I could look at was his hand...

"NO!" Sydney shouted. "I'll do it." It was clear by her reaction that she knew about my – problem, I wasn't aware she did; maybe Olena had said something to her...

I could see by his expression he was confused at my friend's reactions, he kept looking between us. After a few seconds looking at me, he gave a quick nod and walked back to the front of the class.

"Are you really okay Rose?" Mia asked pulling my attention away from Dimitri's retreating form.

"Yeah I'm fine. I can't believe you kicked me Liss." I said with a slight smile.

"I said I was sorry..." She said with a pout, but that soon changed into a smirk... "I think from now on, I should be the one known as Jackie Chan!" The look of superiority on her face made me laugh, which only made me wince in pain.

"Come on, I think we should get you to the hospital." Liss said.

"No, I'm fine. I want to keep going." Everyone was about to argue but I held up my hands to silence them and then picked up the block pad again as I stood back up. "It's only a bruise guys, and you know how many of them I've had." I wasn't clumsy; I just had a knack for getting hurt.

As I straightened up, I happened to catch Dimitri looking straight at me. One side of his mouth pulled up slightly and he gave me a little head bow... but his eyes... If I had to say I saw one particular _look_ in them, it would be 'respect'. I blushed slightly before looking down. I liked that look he gave me... it wasn't a look that I'd seen very often pointed in my direction, if ever. But now it had, I knew I wanted to see it again.

We continued practising our kicks and then went on to some light punching exercises, Dimitri continued walking around the room correcting peoples techniques and occasionally he'd look over to us and tell us what we needed to change, but he always did it at a distance. He never tried to come over to us again. I wasn't sure how I felt about that really, when he was close to me before I tensed up but it felt like I did it more in expectation than anything. I didn't have that feeling of dread come over me like when guys normally came close to me, it was the complete opposite. I actually wanted to reach out to _him_. Maybe things were getting better; maybe something has finally clicked in my stupid brain and I can go near males again. Near _him_...

"What are you smiling at?" Liss asked me. The class had come to an end during my musings and she and Mia were starting to pack up their things.

"Just thinking." I was pleased of the fact that we'd gone through the class with no further incidents, I don't think I could handle any more embarrassing freak outs tonight, especially in front of him. I wanted to impress him, show him I wasn't weak, that I could do this.

I normally only brought a hand towel and sports bottle of water with me, but the other two had all sorts of things in their backpacks; why anyone needed to bring a nail file to a martial arts class was beyond me.

"I didn't freak out Liss..." I said quietly. She looked up at me from where she was bent over and smiled when she realised what I meant.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I stiffened up at first waiting for it to happen, but it didn't. I didn't have that feeling come over me. Even when I felt his hand on my shoulder. I actually wanted to..."

"Wanted to what?" Mia asked.

"I don't know... it was weird."

"You should walk up to him as we leave," Mia said, "...see if it was a fluke or not."

"I don't think so... Let's not push our luck for one night hey!" Liss said. "He's going to be with us for a while I think, so let's just see how things go next time." We grabbed out things, said our goodbyes to Sydney with the promise that I would go to the hospital in the morning and made our way to the front door.

"Good night ladies, I'll see you again on Monday night." Dimitri said from where he was packing up the equipment. "You did really well tonight Rose, you're strong and fast, keep fighting." His words of encouragement made my subconscious perk up and do a little fist pump, she'd taken a beating the last few weeks and had hidden in the darkest corners of my mind like a wimp...

"I will." I said simply. I couldn't help the little grin of satisfaction as I turned away with my friends and I was probably being a stupid teenager, but I'm sure I could feel his eyes on me as we walked to the door.

"I think you impressed the teacher Rose." Mia said grinning.

"I don't think so Mia." Secretly, the little me inside my head was doing her best victory dance around an open flame! He hadn't said anything like that to anyone else as they left, only me...

"Stop teasing Mia. Why wouldn't he be impressed though, she copped one to the face and got back up without a second thought? She impressed the hell out of me..."

"Thanks Liss." When I first saw _him_ walk into the room tonight, my instant reaction was panic. I thought tonight would be a disaster, and even though I 'copped a kick' as Liss put it, at this moment in time I actually feel stronger than I have in weeks. I feel good.

Mia pulled up outside Lissa's house and smiled as she turned in her seat to look at me.

"That's one nice shiner you've got going on there Rose, by morning you're going to looking like you've gone a round with Mike Tyson. You do know that the guys are never going to let you live down the fact that it was Liss who gave it to you... right?"

"Well, they don't have to know, not unless someone tells them." I said pointedly to Liss in the passenger seat.

"Oh, you _bet_ I'm going to tell them." Lissa said excitedly. "This opportunity will probably never come my way again, I'm not going to let it go without milking it for all it's worth chickadee!"

"Oh! Why you..." As I moved to grab her, she flung her car door open and ran towards the house laughing... I heard Mia laughing her goodbye behind us as I ran to catch up with Liss. Once we got inside though, we both came to a grinding halt. At the sound of Liss and I running into the house, everyone in the living room turned to face us. The frivolity of my good mood suddenly soured.

"Hello Vasilissa. It's good to see you again." Victor greeted. Victor Dashkov was a close friend of the family, but Andre and Liss called him uncle. With him this time was his son, Natoli, we hadn't seen him in years as he'd been abroad in a boarding school. Personally I didn't trust either of them, I never had.

"Uncle, it's good to see you too, and it's Lissa, you know that." she said putting her things on the floor and then leaving me in the foyer. "When did you both get in?" She hugged him easily, like she'd only seen him last week instead of a couple of years ago.

"A few hours ago, we haven't visited for so long; I thought it was about time. Plus Natoli here has finally finished his schooling and I thought it would be good for you guys to get to know one another again." There was something about Victor that I've never liked, but now... that feeling was intensified. Standing here alone, even at this distance was unsettling, to say that he made me feel like my skin was crawling was putting it nicely, I actually felt like hurling.

"Is Natalie here too?" Liss asked.

"No, she's decided to take an internship in one of the museums in Paris but I'm sure she'll come home for a visit one day soon."

Natalie and Natoli were twins. I'd often thought how cruel it was to give them names that sounded so much alike, their mother even dressed them alike when they were growing up. As Liss went to say hello to Natoli with a hug, Victor looked at me with a smile. "Hello Rose, it's good to see you again."

"You too Victor... Nat... Ah, I'm going to... ah... Good night everyone." I mumbled as I made my way up the stairs to my room. I quickly jumped into my shower; the hot water on my tense muscles was a welcomed relief. After washing my sweaty hair, I got out and dried myself off. When I came out of the bathroom, I wasn't all that surprised to see Liss lying on my bed waiting for me.

"Big night huh..." she said smiling.

"Yeah, I'll say. What's he really doing here?" I said coming straight to the point.

"I don't know, but he's not as bad as you think he is Rose."

"We'll see. The jury's still out on that for now. You know as well as I do that Victor does nothing without it benefitting him in some way, Nat too."

"I'd say he has some business with dad, but he could be here for the exact reasons he said."

"I doubt it." I had no real basis for my dislike for Victor, I just did.

I stayed upstairs in my room for the rest of the night with all of the events of the night swirling around in my head. From my 'interesting' Tae Kwon Do class with the God who walks and the unsettling re-appearance of Victor and Nat. He hated it when I'd call him Nat, and that was as good a reason as any to keep calling him that. Growing up, he'd hover around Liss and I like an insect, just like a gnat... A rather fitting nickname I thought... He'd changed a lot since being overseas; he was no longer the pimple faced dweeb that annoyed the hell out of us and manipulated situations to get us into trouble. Now he was now tall and very good looking, but just like his father... he made me feel uneasy.

I'm sure their motives would soon become apparent; I just hoped that it wasn't going to end badly.

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**P.S. No-one probably read the header last chapter, but if anyone would like to beta this story for me, that would be great.**  
**Let me know... Also, I've added a Forum Discussion in the FORUM section... It's for any all human story that you think others may like to read. I'm pretty sure I've set it up so anyone can add a story, if not let me know and I'll add it. Here's the link http:/ forum (dot) fanfiction (dot) net/forum/All_Human_Stories/84134/ (take out the spaces and replace the dot...)**


	9. Dimitri's First Lesson Outtake 1

**Well, first up... thank you all for your wonderful reviews, I love how you're all getting into this story.  
Second, I thought I'd let you in on these outtakes... **

**From time to time, I will be putting up chapters in Dimitri's POV. These chapters won't move the story forward but they will either  
show what is happening in a part of the story that Rose isn't privvy to or what's going on in Dimitri's mind at the time. **

**Some may have relevent parts to upcoming chapters, others won't.  
They probably won't be as big as the chapters done in Rose's POV as this story is essentially her journey.**

**I hope you enjoy this little outtake and get to see a little of what's going on in our favourite Russian's head! :-)  
Sandy XOXO**

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**Dimitri's First Lesson – Outtake 1.**

I watched her walk away with her friends and found myself smiling. I had been slightly taken aback by the feeling I got when I touched her shoulder after she got hurt. It was weird; it was almost like pins and needles or a small electrical current running through my hand and up my arm. As soon as I pulled my hand away, the feeling dissipated.

Her reaction earlier in the class had me confused at first, but something about her demeanour and the protective actions of her friends made me think that something terrible had happened to this... Rose girl.

But when she got up and refused to give in to their demands on leaving early, I couldn't help but feel somehow proud of her tenaciousness. She had a fighter's spirit inside of her, I could tell. Not only in this one small action on her part, but also because of how she held herself while doing the kicking exercises. She also had a certain naturalness to her movements. That was something that couldn't be taught.

I also didn't miss the little smile that pulled at her lips as she turned away from me. I hoped my words gave her some encouragement and also made her want to come back. She was – intriguing.

"Mama, I'm back." I called out as I walked through the front door. The house was unusually quiet, but I was certain mama said she wasn't working tonight.

"In the kitchen Dimitri."

I walked in to see my mother and sisters at the kitchen table talking.

"Private conversation or can anyone join in?" I asked.

"Have a seat." My sister Sonja offered. "We're just going over next week's meals and working out what I have to get from the shops tomorrow."

My mother's expression changed as she looked up and down my uniform.

"I didn't realise you had a class tonight Dimitri. Have you found group already?"

"Oh, Alberta asked me to take over her classes for a while. Her father was diagnosed with terminal cancer, so she's gone to stay with her mother to help." I was confused by her face, her expression... "Why? Is something wrong mama?"

When she looked back to me, I saw an expression that I'd seen before. She knew something but couldn't speak about it, like when she'd had a bad shift at the hospital but couldn't talk about the particulars because of the patient privacy law. I knew not to ask...

"No. Nothing's wrong. So, how did it go?" She asked.

"Alright at first, one of the new students had a bit of an incident."

"What happened?" My other sister Karolina asked.

"Well, I was going around helping correct techniques; we were doing forward and sidekicks. Well, these two girls were partnered, Rose and... Lisa? Something like that. Well Lisa got distracted when she saw me walk up to them and kicked Rose in the head."

"Oh God... Was she alright?" My mother asked panicked. _Okay, now I know something's wrong._

"Yeah, do you know her?"

"Yes, but I can't talk about it." _A patient..._

"A nurse was there which was lucky."

"Sydney." My mother offered.

"Yeah, well she came over and checked Rose out, she said that she didn't think anything was broken but wanted her to get an X-ray done just in case. But when they tried to get her to go, she refused. She wanted to keep going with the class. She's strong; if she keeps that attitude she'll be a great fighter one day."

"You sound impressed brother." Sonja commented.

"I am impressed; that kick would have hurt. She started to bruise up almost instantly but she kept going. Not many women would have done that. But what was strange was that everyone around her freaked out a bit; wouldn't let me touch her. Then when she did look at me, she looked... scared. That just didn't mesh with the girl who then got up and kept fighting."

"She's had a rough few weeks Dimitri. Be careful; give her space."

Now I knew that mama knew her from the hospital. Something bad happened to this girl, Rose. Something only she had the right to tell me if she so chose to. I gave a short nod in understanding to my mother.

"Well, I'm going up for a shower." I said.

"Don't use all the hot water either." Sonja yelled as I walked out of the kitchen.

"Wouldn't dream of it sis." I yelled back.

Later that night as I lay in bed, my mind swirled with the events in class. Rose... I couldn't get her face out of my mind. The instructor in me saw the natural talent she displayed in class; her movements were smooth and strong. Even though it was easy to see she was still only a learner, I could also see her potential.

The man in me though... he saw something else. She was the girl I'd seen in the diner. The girl I'd thought of constantly for more than a week. I couldn't believe it when I looked around the class and saw her looking back at me. I couldn't wait to be able to walk over to her and introduce myself but when I finally got to her, (even if it was because she got hurt) I was denied the chance to speak to her.

The look in her eyes was like she was... mesmerised or something. It was intense... At first I thought it was fear, but her pupils weren't dilated her breathing seemed okay – considering the fact that she'd just been kicked. The attraction I felt towards her was instant, not only because of her looks, but something else too... It was like I was being pulled towards her. I wanted to... help her, hold her. _Magnetic._

Saturday morning I woke to the sound of the phone ringing which was soon followed by the screaming voice of my sister Viktoria.

"Dimitri! Phone..." I couldn't help but smile, she was so loud!

I dragged myself out of bed and out to the phone in the hallway. My 'always thinking' mother thought it would be a good idea to have one installed here so if she got a call in from the hospital at some ungodly hour in the night, she wouldn't kill herself by falling down the stairs to answer the phone.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Good morning Dimka, sleeping in are we?" I smiled as I recognised my friend's voice.

"Hi Tash. Yeah, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night actually." _Too much thinking._

"Oh really, something wrong?" she asked concerned.

"No, just stuff on my mind. What do I owe the pleasure?"

"Oh, it's nothing much, if you're tired I'll let you get back to bed."

"No, I was awake anyway." I lied.

"Well, I was wondering if you'd like to come over for lunch today. It's been a while since we've seen each other."

"That would be great Tash, I'd like that. What time?" I hadn't been in town long and I hadn't made any new acquaintances so my days were becoming boring. Tash and I had been friends since junior high and so far was really my only friend here. I was going to start looking for a daytime job shortly, but after my last gig, I thought I'd take some time to de-stress before jumping back into the frypan.

"Whenever you get here will be fine by me. You still have my address?"

"Yep."

"Excellent, I'll see you soon then." We said our goodbyes and I jumped into the shower to wake myself up properly.

A little while later, I drove up the driveway of Tasha's new house. As I opened the door and looked up, I smiled taking in the house's appearance.

"Hello there stranger." She greeted as I closed the car door. "What are you smiling about?"

"This." I said indicating towards the house. "It's very you."

"Yes it is, isn't it?" The two story white painted house was not keeping with the 'birds, trees and nature' surroundings. All of the neighbouring houses looked like their owners had tried to make them blend in to the environment, not this one. This house was all odd angles, multiple roof heights and ultra modern – pushing the boundaries and a little outspoken; daring someone to say something just like its owner. "Welcome to my humble abode." She said as she opened the door for me.

"It's hardly humble Tash. Only you would find a house like this in amongst houses that look like they've grown up out of the ground."

"I know... It was like it was built just for me hey." If I didn't know any better, I'd swear that she'd had it built to her specifications by that comment. But she'd told me last week that she couldn't believe her luck in finding this house.

Inside was also very much Tasha... Highly polished floorboards, pristine white walls and high cathedral ceilings. The floor to ceiling glass wall at the rear of the house let in so much sunlight I had to keep my sunglasses on. The only splashes of color were in the cushions on the white leather lounge, the shaggy rugs on the floor and the drapes, all in her signature colors of red, orange and yellow of course.

I asked her once why she always used those colors, 'Opposing intensities' she said... the cold starkness of the white with the hot colors of fire... The thing that had me most in awe of this place was the huge open fire pit in the middle of the room. Rocks the size of dinner plates were piled more than 3ft high, the well inside still held the charred remains of the last fire. Over the top hung a massive brass flue, like an upside-down funnel.

"_That_ would be awesome in the winter. I bet you can't wait to try it out." I said to her.

"I know... I've actually considered getting a fire going now just to see what it's like, but it's so hot. I've had Christian go look for firewood from around the lake in preparation of winter though, as soon as the temperature drops below 65 degrees, that baby's gonna be smokin'."

"Sixty-five huh? Lightweight..."

"Yeah, yeah "Mr I'm-a-Russian-and-I-laugh-at-the-cold"... You'll be begging to come sit by my fire over winter, you just wait and see."

It was good to catch up again and we laughed over trivial things as she put together a salad lunch.

"Come on, we'll have this out on the deck. In the fridge, there's a lovely bottle of Sauvignon just waiting to be drunk. Grab it for me?" I found the bottle easily and raised my eyebrows at seeing the label. Barossa! "Did I tell you this place backs onto the lake?"

"No, you didn't."

"Oh Dimitri... It's so beautiful out here at night. Christian and I eat out here all the time." She said as we walked onto the large timber deck. The view out here really was wonderful. The water looked extremely inviting too.

"Speaking of... where is your nephew? I haven't seen him in years." She motioned for me to sit on the side of the table facing the lake and she took the one opposite me.

"He's upstairs, he made himself something for lunch before you arrived. He said he didn't want to interrupt us."

"Oh really? He didn't have to do that."

Just then, movement caught my eye. I couldn't believe what I was seeing... Rose...and Lisa. What were they doing here? Tasha couldn't see the girls from where she sat so I made out that I was looking at the water as she spoke.

"Yeah, I know. His life has been a little up in the air lately with everything that has happened. First his parents, now his girlfriend's best friend."

"Who's his girlfriend?" I knew about Tasha's brother and his wife dying, but unfortunately my job in Russia kept me from helping her through such a hard time in her and Christian's life.

"Her name is Lissa." _Ah, not Lisa...its Lissa. _"A few weeks ago her friend Rose was attacked in her own home where they were having a graduation party. Rose's boyfriend was killed when he tried to help her. She's been having trouble getting past what happened and Lissa has been doing everything she can to help her. She's such a wonderful girl, so caring. She would be a wonderful nurse or doctor, she has a healing spirit."

"Who... Rose?"

"No, Lissa. She's just that sort of person, you know?"

Just then we heard footsteps hammering down the wooden staircase. Obviously Christian saw the girls by the lake.

"Hi Aunt Tash, Dimitri... Liss is down at the lake, I'll just be..."

"Yeah, yeah... I get it. Say hi to her for me." Tasha called out to Christian over her shoulder as he ran to the lake. "Liss is the blonde, that's her friend Rose with her."

"That is a coincidence." I said. I had a feeling that we'd be running into each other a lot, so best say that I know them now. Tash looked at me with a confused look, so I explained... "They're in the Tae Kwon Do class that I just took over from Alberta last night. I didn't know their names."

I felt a little guilty lying and I don't really know why I did, but by feigning ignorance before, I at least found out what went wrong, why Rose reacted the way she did.

"Really, oh that's right; Christian did tell me that the girls were doing that. Do you think it will help Rose?"

"Yes, I think it should. She has a lot of potential, she's a natural actually. I hope she stays with it."

I watched as Rose walked off by herself after Christian came over to Lissa, the look on her face as she walked showed that she was deep in thought. She looked so sad, and now, knowing what I did I had this really strong urge to protect her, while at the same time, show her how to be strong again. It was a very unfamiliar feeling.

It was a few hours later I said goodbye to Tasha, it had been a good afternoon. That night I sat up thought about what I'd teach in class on Monday night, I wanted to be able to speak to her. I knew from what my mother and Tasha had told me and her friend's reactions in class that I would have to take it slow, make sure she was comfortable with me being in her space. I had to get this right if I wanted her trust. _Why did I want her trust? _I don't think I'm sleeping enough...


	10. Chapter 8 Male Invasion

**Hi Everyone. Well first up, thanks for all of your reviews, you all bring a smile to my face. Second, I want to wish everyone  
a safe and merry Christmas. It's now just after 2pm on the 23rd December here so this will be my last update  
until after Christmas, so I have given you a huge chapter! Nearly 7000 words. **

**Thanks again everyone and I'm glad you all enjoyed reading Dimitri's side of things. He'll have more to say in future chapters!**

**Merry Christmas from Australia!**

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**8. Male Invasion**

Another night, another nightmare... They weren't getting any clearer, still not making any sense other than scaring the hell out of me. I had to believe what Oksana kept telling me, that they would eventually lessen as I began to work out my fears over what had happened to me the night of the ill fated party. It was now three weeks since my life fell apart, three weeks since Mason... well...

After a night of sweating my way through nightmare after nightmare, I dragged my tired, exhausted backside into the shower. Once out, I realised just how hungry I was, it was something I hadn't felt in such a long time. Then I realised I didn't have anything to eat before class last night and then once we got home, our unexpected visitors put a kibosh on any further thoughts of eating.

As soon as I made my way down the stairs, I realised that I probably should have stayed in bed for the day. I turned my eyes skyward, silently wondering what I'd done wrong to deserve all of this shit. The sounds of electronic gunfire and fits of yelling and laughter coming from the living room had my jaw clenching. We had company... I took a deep breath and tried to silently make my way to the kitchen. But why I thought I'd have a snowballs chance in hell of achieving such a task is beyond me.

"Rose! There you are... Come say hello chicky babe!"

_Chicky babe... I'll give you chicky babe, Dickwad! _I knew I had two choices; either continue walking and have him follow me – which he most definitely would _or_ I turn around and confront him...

Oksana's voice skipped through my head... _Until you confront your past Rose, you won't be able to move forward into your future... _

"Shut up idiot..." I heard Andre hiss under his breath. I turned and glanced into the living room and suddenly didn't feel so hungry anymore. My now comfortable, almost male-less living arrangements had been infiltrated. In the room, Victor, Nat and Mr D watched Andre and Adrian fight it out on some shoot 'em up playstation game.

"Chill man... Rose loves me, don't ya sweetness..."

"In your dreams Adrian." I said. I tried to put a little attitude into it, but it came out rather weak. Having five males in such close quarters was becoming more than I could handle, and it pissed me off to feel so... scared, yet again.

"How did you know Rosebud? Able to sneak into my dreams are you?" He said with a wink. "You're looking a little thin babe, isn't Mrs D feeding you enough?" I glared at him and was about to turn around and walk back up to my room when he continued talking. "Nice bruise by the way." Adrian said with a smirk. He knew I wouldn't be able to leave that one alone.

"I got it during training." I had no idea why I kept talking to him... I knew it would only make things worse.

"Oh yeah, Andre told me you and the girls are doing Karate or something."

"Tae Kwon Do." I corrected. "Lissa missed her mark and kicked me."

"Doesn't look like much of a miss to me; normally misses don't leave a bruise." I noticed Nat just sat there with a smirk on his face.

"Well they do when they hit your face and not the block of foam, so technically she missed her mark. It can get a little rough in class." He laughed softly under his breath and shook his head, probably picturing sweet, soft Lissa kicking me in the face.

"Mmm, hot..."

"Excuse me? I didn't know you were into the 'battered woman' look Adrian." Now the 'snarky bitch' inside me was coming out to play.

"Funny, Rosebud." God I hated that name... "I meant the whole 'rough' thing... _that's_ pretty hot; I'm a big fan of full-contact sports." At this both Andre and Nat both snickered.

"Oh, I'm well aware of that Adrian. You seem to mistake me for someone who _doesn't_ know who the hell you are." I'd had a rather serious crush on Adrian as I grew up, he just kept getting more gorgeous every time I saw him, but I also saw the line of girls in his wake. So as much as I fantasized about kissing him over the years, amongst other things, the thought of joining that line of girls loved and left by Adrian Ivashkov, kept my feet firmly planted on the safe side of the fence. The grass on my side was green enough thank you very much.

"Ah Rosebud, I've missed our 'talks', unfortunately I have to get home... it's been fun." Adrian said as he walked towards the French doors that led outside.

"For some..." I replied dryly.

He turned around and made cat noises while scratching at the air with his fingers before opening the doors. I couldn't help but giggle, he was such a dweeb!

"Do svidan'ya baby..." He loved to play on the fact that he could speak Russian; he even taught Andre when we were growing up so that they could tease me and I wouldn't know what they were saying. _And_ he always had to have the last word...

"Not if I have anything to say about it..." I yelled after he'd gone.

"But you don't my sweet Rosebud!" He yelled from the lawn he was now half across... I could tell by the tone, he was smiling too...

_Creep!_

I looked back to the other four still in the room and saw them all smiling at my exchange with Adrian.

"Good to see some things never change." Victor said to no-one in particular.

"Rose, I think Amy has something she needs to speak to you about; I think she's still in the kitchen." Mr D told me. Since being here, he was careful to give me just the right amount of space yet still letting me know he was there for me if I needed him. In a lot of ways, I thought of him more as my father than the one who slept in the house I once called home. I thanked him and continued my way into the kitchen.

"There she is..." Mrs D said smiling as I walked in. Liss was already halfway through eating her pancakes. "What would you like for breakfast Rose?"

"Ah, just some toast is fine thanks Mrs D. I was told that you needed to speak to me?"

"Oh, yeah..." She seemed a little nervous as she turned around to pop two slices of bread into the toaster. "Um, we got a phone call last night while you girls were out, um, the police want to speak to you on Tuesday morning and they said that they'll come here if it would make you feel more comfortable."

I'd forgotten about them. Well, sort of. I knew that they'd be coming around sooner or later, but I just... Suddenly I didn't feel so hungry anymore. I turned around to walk back out of the kitchen when Mrs D spoke again.

"Rose honey, your toast is nearly ready."

"Oh sorry Mrs D, I don't think..." I shook my head as I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw. The thought of having to talk about that night again turned my stomach; bile lurching up into my throat. I took off with my hand over my mouth and only just made it to the visitor's bathroom just off the laundry room for my stomach to heave in nervous energy. Minutes later, as I stood rinsing my mouth out and washing the cold sweat off my now pale face; Lissa rubbed comforting circles on my back.

"It'll be okay Rose, Mom and I will be with you the whole time. Dad said he'll stay with us in the room too – if you want him to that is."

"What was Adrian doing here?" I asked ignoring her statement for the time being.

"Oh, mom rang his place last night after we got home to tell Andre about Victor and Natoli arriving. They came over and spent nearly all night on the playstation, well that's what we think anyway because that's where mom found the three of them this morning. I don't know where they were when we came home because I didn't see them."

By the sounds of it, the Dashkov's were staying here. Suddenly this house was becoming a little too crowded and thoughts of going back home filtered in.

"Maybe I should go back home for a while Liss..."

"What! Why? Have we done something wrong?"

"No Liss, it's just that... well..." I looked down as I let out a sigh. I hated feeling the way I was, but living under the same roof as Victor was never something that I liked and with my life the way it was now, it just made things worse.

"They'll be gone soon I'm sure. Please don't go Rose. I love having you here." I turned around and was caught in the pale jade green 'puppy dog' eyes of my best friend.

"Don't look at me with those eyes woman..." I warned. My shoulders sagged in defeat when she upped the ante by raising her eyebrows and pouting, making an even sadder face. "Fine... but if they get in my way, I'm out of here okay!"

"They won't, I promise." Geez I'm a sucker. Now I just had to make sure that I steered clear of the guys, now that Nat was here, Adrian and Andre were sure to be around more often too.

To get me out of the house, Liss took me to the lake. Personally I think she chose to go there because Christian's Aunts new place backed onto it and she hoped that she would see him again – accidentally on purpose more like it.

And surprise, surprise... she did. I told them to take some time for themselves; that I'd take a walk around the lake. As I walked, my mind flittered to last night's class, my thoughts drifting to not what we did but at the ease and comfort I felt in Dimitri's presence, I still couldn't understand what it all meant. Was it just him or was it just the start of me getting a grip on my life like Oksana had said would eventually happen?

That night I dreamt...again... This time, I ended up more rattled than scared.

_Sitting on the bench at the cemetery my mind was blank, until I saw him._

"_Mase..." I whispered through my tears._

_A sad smile settled on his face and put his hand over his heart..._

"_How could you Rose?" He asked me._

"_What? What do you mean?"_

"_I saw you. I heard your thoughts." I didn't know what he meant..._

"_What... when?"_

"_I died for you Rose. I gave up my life for you and within weeks you're lusting after someone else. How could you?" His voice was slowly rising..._

_Oh no! _

"_Mason, I'm not... I..."_

"_Don't lie to me..." He growled. Suddenly his soft blue eyes were no longer soft nor were they blue... Suddenly his features turned cold and hard, his eyes looked as though they were ringed in a red flame of anger within the paleness of his face. "I waited for you, I put up with all the ribbing, I even died for you and this is the thanks I get?"_

_He lunged for me and grabbed me by the throat. I tried to pull at his fingers so that he'd let go, but he was too strong. He pushed against my mouth with his own, grinding my lips into my teeth... it hurt. I punched against him, anywhere I could but I couldn't stop him... No Mase... No... _

_Suddenly a hand... I tried to grab it, but it was too far away..._

I woke trembling and gasping for air. I jumped as my door flung open and saw Liss running towards me.

"Rose... Oh sweetie. Shhh. It's alright, I'm here now. It's alright." _No, it wasn't... _"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No..." I whispered. She stayed with me for the rest of the night, but I couldn't sleep. All I could see was Mason's face turn to stone under my betrayal. He was right, he did wait for me, he never pushed and he gave his life for me. How could I be so selfish, so self centred...

I sat in the chair by my window and watched the sun rise up over the horizon. I heard the sheets rustle as Liss started to wake, but I was so tired, so exhausted.

"Rose?" She said sleepily. "There you are. Are you alright?" She stooped down in front of me and held my hand. "Didn't you sleep again?"

I shook my head as my eyes never left my rose bush in the garden outside.

"Why don't you take a shower before we go downstairs for breakfast? It'll make you feel better." I looked back at my friend and sister and saw the worry in her eyes.

"Okay Liss. Thanks..." She knew what I was thanking her for and it wasn't the offer of breakfast. "I'll be down in a sec."

She smiled and then kissed my forehead before leaving me to get ready for the coming day. _Oh joy..._

The rest of the weekend went by much the same. Nightmares that usually consisted of broken images and disjointed feelings were now being replaced by Mason; kind one minute, cold and angry the next... They always began early in the evening which left me awake for the rest of the night.

During the days, Andre did his best to keep Adrian out of my hair, well as much as he could but he's a persistent bugger, he's like a dog with a bone – gnawing away. After much pushing and assertion that I was fine, I was finally able to get Liss to go out with Christian on Sunday. Mia said she'd spend the day with me, but I said that I just wanted a day to chill... and maybe get caught up on some sleep. Well, that's what I told them, and it seemed to do the trick.

I was scared to close my eyes on Sunday night but I couldn't stop my eyelids from closing; luckily my Mason nightmare abated leaving me to my previous ones and on Monday morning I woke up to a knock at my door. I could tell by the knock who it was...

"Come in Liss." I said sleepily

"How did you know it was me? Can you like, pop into my head or something?"

"No Liss. Why are you here at..." I turn to look at my clock and groan. "...six bloody AM?"

"I wanted to go shopping."

"You know as well as I do that the shops aren't open at the crack of dawn. Come get me in a couple of hours..." I close my eyes and roll over, turning my back to her.

"I know that, but it's going to take you forever to get ready." _Smartass!_

"Come back in an hour, last offer." I waited for a reply that didn't come... "Take it or leave it Liss."

"Fine! You are such a grouch." I think I remember hearing the door shut, but soon enough I found myself waking to more friggin knocking.

"Alright, alright... I'm coming." I yelled. I begrudgingly got out of bed and went to the door. I couldn't help but glare at the almost 'giddy with excitement' Lissa standing at my door. "I haven't had a shower yet Liss."

"That's fine, I'll wait." I shook my head as I turned around and grabbed my favourite pair of ripped skinny jeans that was still in a pile of folded clothes on the chair in the corner of my room. I went to my closet and grabbed my white long sleeve hoodie shirt and headed for my ensuite. I know its summer and all, but the hoodie was only made out of T-shirt material and wearing it in populated places made me feel a little more – invisible.

"Not that ugly thing again." Liss whined.

"Can it..." I said grumpily as I shut the bathroom door.

=x=

I suppose there was an added bonus with coming here so early, less people at this time of the morning. We were now in our fourth dress shop, Mia had been saving for this shopping trip apparently and Liss was armed with her mother's gold Amex card and she knew how to wield it too, especially when she had her mother's permission to 'go wild'... I actually choked on my breakfast when Mrs D said that; I even had to make sure she was feeling alright and ask if she hadn't fallen out of bed last night and given herself some sort of head injury. I knew Mr & Mrs D spoiled their kids, but I've never known them to give Liss free rein with a credit card before. They may need to take out a second mortgage on their house by this afternoon to pay for it...

"Oh Rose, this is the dress you were born for. I don't care how practical you are." She held up a black dress and I couldn't help but smile. It was made of a silky black material; it was strapless and sleek and would fall just about the knees. It was slightly flared at the hemline but the rest of it looked like it would definitely manage some serious clinging action. Super sexy that was for sure.

"Oh shit yeah Rose, that is _so_ you." Mia purred in agreeance.

I hated to admit it... "That is my dress..." I mumbled. Or it was something that I used to wear... I stared at it longingly, it was so beautiful.

"Try it on." She said smiling.

"I can't. That's the sort of dress that breaks dress codes or starts new religions." _And drew unwelcomed attention from a certain sect of our species._

"Either try it on or I'll just buy it for you anyway." Liss stated in a way that left no room for argument. I glared at her and pursed my lips; I knew she wasn't bluffing...

"Pushy bitch..." I muttered under my breath as I snatched the dress from her hand and walked to the change rooms. I didn't know if I'd ever have the courage to wear something like this again, but I was still 'me' enough to want to at least try it on... I had no idea why I had to buy a dress, especially one like this one. But I knew my friends well enough to know it's easier to go with the flow than fight them.

"Yes I am, and it would pay you to remember that fact my dear." I turned back to see her and Mia high fiving each other like five year olds. The dress was perfect; as we all knew it would be and no sooner was it off me that Liss had it at the counter to be paid for.

Three hours and about twenty bags later we were sitting in an empty corner of the food court. My appetite still wasn't what it used to be, but it was getting better.

"So, how did your date with Christian go yesterday, lover girl?" Mia asked.

Mia and I couldn't help but giggle when Liss blushed scarlet.

"Ooo! That good huh! Spill, we want all the details." Mia was almost salivating over the details, unlike me...

"Ah, no... I don't really need to hear all the gory details thank you very much." I said holding up my hand. I was glad that Liss finally went out with Christian; she'd been sticking by my side for way too long. She definitely had a spring in her step today and I really didn't need the mental vision of what put it there so to ward off that particular conversation, I tried to deflect...

"We all know what the details are without her having to tell us Mia," I said, "...so why don't you tell us what _you_ did yesterday instead?" I was surprised to see her blushing this time...

"Well, if you must know, I went on a date too."

"Really? Who with?" Liss asked excitedly.

"Eddie..." As the name fell from her lips, her eyes widened and flashed to me, Lissa's too. I hadn't seen Eddie since the funeral and I really got on well with him at the party. He was so much like Mason... Liss was about to say something to steer the conversation back to her after seeing my face, but I didn't want that, I wanted Mia to be happy and if Eddie was making her happy then I was good with that.

"How did it go?" I asked.

"Really good." She said smiling. "We've seen each other a few times now, he's so... amazing. I really, really like him."

"That's great Mia." I meant it too. I was a little sad that she didn't think she could talk about him around me though, but I knew she only did that so as not to upset me. We talked for a while longer until I grew uneasy with the increased number of people that had started to sit near us. We gathered up our things and I pulled the hood of my shirt up over my head before walking back to the car.

Once Mia dropped us back home, I realised that we only a few hours to go before we were to head off to Tae Kwon Do... and Dimitri. I wanted to know if I still felt at ease in his presence, but at the same time Mason's words from my nightmare swirled in my head.

=x=

Liss and I walked into the studio behind Mia and Sydney and made our way over to our usual spot at the back of the room.

"Hey Sydney." Mia greeted.

"Hi girls, how was your weekend?"

"Good, I went on a date, as did the princess here. She finally decided to put that boyfriend of hers out of his misery and give him some lovin'."

"Mia!" Liss and I yelled quietly.

"Oh don't go all shy on me now Liss, you've been walking around all day with a grin that would make the Joker all hot and heavy, don't tell me it wasn't Christian who put it there."

Sydney and I couldn't help but laugh at the mortified look Lissa's on face.

"I never said he didn't, but I don't think this is really the place to be discussing my love life."

"At least you have one..." I blurted out before I even realised I'd had the thought.

"Touché" Mia said with a smirk. The rest of the conversation stopped as Sydney tapped her hand against my arm. I looked at her and followed her line of sight, my breath catching as my eyes fell on the God who walks... I looked away quickly as Mason's face flashed into my memories.

"Good Evening everyone, I hope you all had a great weekend. I see there are no new students here, so no need to reintroduce myself. Let's get started on our stretches shall we?"

Everyone moved into a circle in the centre of the room; I tried to look at the other women in the room to see what exercises we were doing so that I wouldn't have to look at him, but my eyes kept betraying me. Most of the time when I looked at him, I was surprised to find him looking straight at me so I would quickly look away again. After about the fourth glance in his direction, he smiled at me and sure as shit... my mouth betrayed me too by smiling back.

"Okay ladies," Dimitri said after our warm-up, "... I want to do something a little different here; I want us to work on some balancing exercises. First up, while standing on your right foot, lift your left leg forward bent at the knee so that your knee is directly in front of your hips; arms out to the side. Hold for as long as you can."

This was easy... or so _I_ thought. As I stood stock still, I watched the other women in the class lose their balance one by one. I couldn't understand why everyone found this so hard to do. We had to change legs and once again I watched everyone falter.

"Okay, next exercise... balance on your right leg, lift your left foot up behind you and grasp with your left hand. Bend and reach forward with your right arm while pulling your foot up behind you as far as you can and hold."

This had people falling before they even had a chance to stand still. Liss nearly ended up in Mia's lap at one point. I saw that Dimitri was slowly making his way around the class as he went through a couple more exercises. I so desperately wanted to know if the lack of panic last week was a one off thing or not but at the same time, I didn't want to freak out in a room full of people. I decided to take deep breaths and concentrate on balancing.

"Excellent ladies, you're all doing really well. These exercises can be easily practiced at home or at work. By improving your balance, the more difficult moves will be a lot easier to accomplish."

He was now only three people from my right and we were doing a new pose. We had to balance on our left foot, arms straight out from our shoulders and our right leg pointing to the side. That wasn't too bad until he told us that we had to lean as far to our left as possible.

Laughter erupted once again as people fell all over the place. He was now helping the woman beside me and still there was no panic. Would he attempt to come near me knowing what I was like last week? Apparently yes...

"You have extraordinary balance Rose." He said standing only two feet away. "Have you done dancing or gymnastics before?"

"Ah... No., nothing."

"You're a natural." _God he was stunning. _"I noticed in one of the other exercises before that you needed a little correcting but I was with someone else at the time. Mind if I show you the right way now?"

"No, not at all."

"Okay..." He said with a smile. "It was the yoga stance I showed you. Stand on your right foot.

"Now lift your left up placing your foot on the inside of your right thigh. That's it, but lift your left foot higher, good... Arms up."

He was standing just in front of me and my attention was definitely somewhere other than where it should have been and I started to wobble to my left. He reached out and placed his hand on either side of my ribs to balance me.

"Whoa there... Concentrate on centring your body." He said softly laughing. "Keep your arms up, palms together." His hand moved from my side and went up my right arm; I hadn't noticed that I'd started to bring my arms down. The feeling that coursed through me at his touch was... electric, just like last week. I couldn't help the goosebumps that covered my body.

"That's it. Now, hold for as long as you can." He let his hands fall to his side as my heart nearly beat its way out of my chest. I was sure everyone in the room could hear it, that and my breathing... If I didn't get a grip I was sure to pass out from hyperventilating. Only this time it wasn't brought on by a panic attack... It was purely from hormones.

"Thank you." I said quietly as I stared into his warm brown eyes. They were slightly lighter than mine, almost like dark honey... just like his voice.

"I have a feeling that you are going to be one badass fighter Rose." With that he walked to Lissa beside me. I swallowed hard and changed into the stance that everyone was now doing before looking beside me. Liss was trying to follow Dimitri's instructions, but Mia and Sydney were both looking directly at me... both with the same disbelieving expressions on their faces.

I gave them my best, 'stop looking at me' face and soon enough Dimitri walked to the other women around the circle.

"Holy shit Rose..." Liss whispered as soon as he was far enough away. "I didn't know what to do when he came so close to you. I didn't want to..."

"It's alright Liss." I interrupted, "It was all good."

"How? Did you...?"

"No. There was nothing, well... there _was_ something but it wasn't fear, it wasn't anything like that."

"What...?" Before she could say any more, Dimitri started speaking as he dragged this huge foam block to one end of the studio. It was huge, at least six or seven foot long and about five feet wide; and really thick too, at least 15 inches.

"Okay, some of you may already know this exercise, some may not. Julie, could you help demonstrate with me please?" He called out the same woman as he did last week; she looked to be in her late twenties. She came out and went to stand beside the large foam block that Dimitri just laid flat on the floor. She held one of the block pads that we used for kicking exercises.

"Okay, I'll take over from Julie after I show you all what I want you to do." He said as he walked closer to us. "Ready Julie?" She nodded while holding the block pad over the foam block on the floor. Dimitri gave a quick bow before running towards her.

Just as he got to the large block on the floor, he leapt forward flying through the air sideways and kicked the block Julie was holding with both feet. Then he landed with a thud onto the foam block underneath him.

"Oh shit... I can't do that!" Exclaimed Lissa.

"Yes you can Sis." I said confidently.

"No, I can't."

Personally, I couldn't wait to give it a go.

"Alright, everyone line up." Dimitri called out as he took over from Julie.

All us girls were towards the back of the line and I could stop the giggle as I shoved Liss in front of me just as it came up for my turn. She was about to argue when Dimitri yelled out.

"Alright Lisa, you're up."

"It's Lissa..." I corrected.

"Or you could call her princess." Mia said while laughing behind me. I stifled my laugh as Liss turned around to give us her meanest death glare.

"I said nothing..." I whispered while holding my hands in the air. "It was her!"

Mia wrapped her arm around my shoulder as we watched Liss run to the mat. Only problem was when she got to the 'flying' part... she didn't fly! She sort of... jumped. He let her have another go but she just couldn't seem to let herself fall; at least not willingly.

Next was my turn.

"Go get him Rose..." Mia said with an elbow to my back. I took a deep breath and glared at the block pad Dimitri was holding in the air; making it out to be an opponent that needed to die. Suddenly, it wasn't a block pad anymore, it was Jesse Zeklos. I don't know how long I stood there for but I was suddenly brought back to reality when Mia shook my shoulders. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." I said unsteadily.

"You don't have to do anything you aren't ready for, you know that don't you?"

"Yes Mia, I do. I'm fine." With a nod she moved back to give me room. Another breath and I ran forward. The closer I got, the angrier I got... I slammed into the pad with everything I had and when I landed on the foam block, I was breathing heavy and had my eyes closed.

"Are you okay Rose?" He asked me, "You're not hurt are you?"

"No. I'm fine." I quickly scooted off the foam and went over to my friends. We went through our forward and side kick exercises again and then the punching ones. Before I knew it, the class came to an end.

"Are you going to go talk to him Rose?" Mia asked.

"No. Why would I?"

"No reason, I just thought you might want to, you know, _use_ him to overcome your fears."

"_Use_ him? No Mia. I don't know why I am the way I am around him, it's good but I have to get over my problems by myself and for the right reasons."

"I know, sorry."

Sydney was also interested in how I felt when Dimitri touched me; she on the other hand thought Mia's idea was valid. She said I should try to be near Dimitri as much as possible, that it might help getting closer with other guys. By the time we'd finished our talk, we were the last ones left in the studio.

"Bye Dimitri." Mia called out as we walked towards the door. "Great class tonight."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it Mia. Ah, Rose, could I talk to you for a minute please?"

I froze! _Why? What did I do? He wants to be alone... _

"Go..." Mia whispered, snapping me out of my inner ramblings. "We'll be just outside."

I watched them leave before walking over to Dimitri and stopping a good ten feet away from him.

"You did really well tonight Rose. I meant what I said, you're a natural and if you want to take this further, I think you'll end up one of the best fighters around. I wanted to talk to you about something else though, if you don't mind?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Ah..." He said as he gracefully lowered himself to the floor. "I don't want to overstep myself here, but..." He looked nervous. "Can I ask why you took this class, your motivation?"

_He knows..._

"Um, last month some bad things happened and I have some issues that I thought could be helped by learning some self defence."

"You were hurt?" The image of Mason with his hand on his heart at the cemetery flashed through my mind.

"No, yes... sort of. But not as bad as someone else was."

"Did I make you uncomfortable earlier when I came up to you?"

I couldn't help but smile...

"No, you didn't."

"Why is that funny?" He asked confused.

"Well um... since... it happened, you're the only guy that's been able to get within fifty feet of me."

One eyebrow lifted in surprise before a half smile pulled at one side of his mouth.

"Really? What happens when someone else comes near you?"

"I freak. Total meltdown..." _Why was I telling him this?_

"Well, I'm glad you feel comfortable around me. I'd never want you to feel any different so if ever you need space, just shake your head or something and let me know."

"Thank you." I stood staring at him probably a bit longer than was appropriate but I wanted to see if I could be closer to him when it was just me and him here – alone. "Um, could I try something?"

"Sure."

I took a deep breath and walked slowly towards him; he never moved. When I was standing beside him, I looked at the floor next to where he sat. _I can do this..._

I sat down leaving a couple of feet between us and slowly shuffled closer I got, the bigger my grin. No fear...

"All good?" He asked quietly.

"Yup." And I was too.

"Overcoming life's hurdles can be daunting, but know that you will get through it. Use whatever means you can to help you on your journey. Friends, family... whatever you need. Sometimes talking to a stranger is easier than talking to someone you know, if you need to talk, I'm always here too."

_Oh God, oh God, oh God..._

"Thanks. You know, you should have been a yoga master instead of this..." He smiled...

"Oh really, why is that?"

"You're very... Zen." His smile widened just before he let out a loud laugh.

"Zen... Well, there's a funny story there Rose."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. As a kid I was tall and gangly, my sisters were taking yoga classes and my mother made me go with them; she said it would help me with my co-ordination, which it did. Problem was girls from my school started to come and when they saw me there... well, things got interesting at school after that. Tall and gangly make for geeky teenagers."

"You... geeky? I don't think so."

"You'd be surprised. After a few run in's with the _less_ geeky guys at school, I decided to take up Tae Kwon Do. So between the two disciplines, I became stronger, more confident and a whole lot less geeky."

"I can tell..." _OH... BLAH! And I now have a case of verbal diarrhoea... _"Ah... I was wondering if you could do something..."

"Anything what do you need?"

"Can you..." I closed my eyes and pulled my bottom lip in between my teeth, I was so nervous. "...put your hand on my shoulder again, like you did last week?" I couldn't believe I was being so forward. _He's silent... he's thinking I'm an idiot..._

"Open your eyes so you can see what I'm doing." I did what he asked and as the weight of his hand rested on my shoulder I began to giggle with nervous tension. I felt like I was ten!

"There's nothing..." I said under my breath. All I could feel was the weight and that _tingly _feeling...

"What?" He asked me.

"There's no fear. There's no fear!" I said louder. The shit eating grin on my face felt like it was about to split my face in half. "Thank you so much." For the first time in weeks I felt like I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, like there was indeed a cause to hope that one day I wouldn't fear men anymore. Dimitri had no idea what this simple act meant to me.

"You're welcome Rose, feel free to – _explore_ your limits whenever you want. All you have to do is ask." He said as he took his hand away.

"You should be careful what you promise people Dimitri. I may just take you up on that offer."

"I hope you do." He said to me with a smile.

_What? _The look on his face was – confusing... But... _No..._

I stood up grinning like an idiot; he probably thought I was some stupid teenage girl spinning a yarn to get him to touch me.

He continued to sit on the floor looking up at me and I swear his smile could light up the darkest of places. "Good night Rose, I'll see you again on Friday night."

"Yes, you will." I said confidently before turning to walk over to the door. I don't know how I contained the excitement that was bubbling up inside of me. Before leaving though, I turned to look at him on last time. He still sat on the floor with his arms around his drawn up knees but he was looking into his lap with a smile. _Could he be...? _

I walked out to my waiting friends and sure enough they all had questioning looks on their faces. All I wanted to do was jump around screaming while doing the best victory dance ever, but I didn't.

"Well... How did it go?" Liss asked.

"Obviously good Liss, there was no screaming and she came out grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Plus, we all heard him laugh." Mia said in a deadpan voice.

"It was fine, but can we talk about it later?" I needed to process everything in my head first... They agreed but I knew that they wouldn't let it go, I would be telling them tomorrow.

Tomorrow... tomorrow was going to be a big day; hopefully this feeling inside me would help me through.


	11. Chapter 9 Let It Out

**Hi Everyone, I hope you all had a great Christmas. We'll be having a New Years party here tonight so I thought I'd get this chapter posted now... I haven't forgotten about "My New Life", I will post the next chapter of that one soon, I've just been busy... Sorry.**

**So... Happy New Year everyone, I hope you don't all drink too much, be successful in any resolutions and have a better 2011! **

**Sandy P.S. Authors note at the bottom.**

* * *

**9 Let it out!**

Detectives Tiana Ivanson and Jean Morris sat on the lounge in front of me. They were the same detectives that saw me in the hospital after the party. Mr D sat on one of the recliners while I was sitting in between Mrs D and my mother. Yeah... my mother. Apparently Mrs D thought she should be here and called her. Personally I thought she should go home, she hadn't been interested in me up to this point, so why start now.

"Okay Rose," Det. Ivanson said. "There are just a few questions we need to go over. First of all, have you ever been in a relationship with either of the accused?"

"What? NO! I may have flirted a little with Jesse, but nothing that would... nothing."

"What about the other boys?" Det. Morris asked.

"Ralf? God no..." The shiver that went down me was for a number of reasons. "And Aaron, no, he and Liss sort of went out in junior high but that was only for a couple of months. He couldn't keep his true colors under wraps for too long and she kicked his sorry ass to the curb."

"True colors?" Ivanson asked.

"Yeah, all three of them are pigs. They harass everyone at school, they're the stereotypical 'school bullies' and aren't afraid to show it; to those who they think they'll get away with it at least. Around adults they're the perfect guys, all smiles and helpful and shit..." The two detectives glanced to each other before looking at their notes again.

"You said that the only drink you didn't make yourself or that Mason Ashford gave you, was one that Jesse Zeklos gave you, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"Did you ask what it was before accepting it?"

"Yes, I did. He said it was a vodka and orange."

"And how much alcohol had you consumed before he gave you this drink?"

"Ah, not sure really. I had a few shots earlier on and a couple of drinks after that."

"Did anyone see him give you this drink?" Ivanson asked. She was really starting to piss me off with these questions.

"Yes, Mason did."

"No-one else, none of your other friends saw this?" Morris asked.

"No."

I had the distinct feeling that 'bitch-face' Ivanson didn't believe me. I wasn't sure about Morris. After my grilling, they finally got Liss to come in and give her side of the story. It wasn't anything that I hadn't heard before though.

"So, what are those boys being charged with?" My mother asked.

"Well, at this stage we're still collecting statements from the kids at the party. Because a lot of them are heading towards colleges or holidays, we're having a few difficulties tracking them down."

"What do you mean you haven't laid charges yet?" My mother said. "My daughter was attacked in her own goddamn bedroom for shit sake and those bastards are walking around free as birds... This is _crap_!"

I sat staring at my mother in shock... When did she start caring about what happened to me? Even she thought it was all my fault in hospital.

"Mrs Hathaway..." Det. Morris said trying to defuse my mother.

"_Ms_ Hathaway." She corrected.

"We understand your concerns, but there are certain steps that have to be taken to ensure that the law is upheld. As soon as all the testimonies are collected, I assure you that we will do what is necessary."

That sounded vague.

"So when do you expect that we can see some real progress with this case?" Mr D asked.

"We're working as fast as we can Mr Dragomir." Bitch-face said.

"Not from where I sit you're not." Mom grumbled. "You never do."

_What did that mean?_

"Look," Mr D said leaning forward and placing his elbows on his knees. "I understand you have a job to do, but things have been hard for Rose. She's had to deal with some serious consequences from these boys' actions and for her to fully heal; they need to be held accountable for what they did. And what they did to Rose was bad enough, without even taking into account what happened to young Mr Ashford."

I cringed as he brought up Mason's death; the nightmare I had about him was still fresh in my mind.

"Yes, what happened to Mr Ashford was extremely unfortunate, he..."

"UNFORTUNATE!" I screamed as I leapt up. _Now_ I was pissed. "Mason's death was – unfortunate? Are you fucking _kidding_ me?" _How dare they!_ I couldn't believe what I was hearing... Anger riled up inside of me like never before... All I could see was red...

"Rose. That's enough." My mother said sharply as she grabbed my arm to pull me back to the lounge chair.

"What? Did you just hear what I did, what she said? Mason's dead because of those pricks and it's... _unfortunate_? _FUCK_!" I reefed my arm out of my mother's grip and took off into the foyer and out the front door. I could hear them calling out to me but my chest felt like it was about to explode. I was so bloody angry... I couldn't believe they said that. Mason... Beautiful, kind Mason... He died for me and they think it's unfortunate... _FUCKERS!_

I took off up the street, running as fast as I could. I had no idea where I was going but I knew I had to get away from that house. It wasn't long before my lungs were burning and dark patches danced before my wet bloodshot eyes. I bent forward grasping my knees with my hands and tried to catch my breath.

"_I'm so sorry Mase... Oh God..." _I cried in between painful breaths. I stood up and saw I was near the road leading to the lake. This was as good a place as any to get lost.

It didn't take long before I finally reached the lake. I walked through the parking lot that had only one car parked in it, hopefully that meant that no-one should be around to hear my breakdown. I turned to the left and made my way to the side where no houses were built. I weaved through the trees but not seeing anything other than memories, I wanted to yell and scream and cry. My head was swirling with so much...images, words, feelings – I couldn't breathe. The hand... Mason... all the things those dipshit detectives said... it was too much...

Hot tears streamed unbridled down my cheeks and wave after wave of despair crashed into me, crushing me. This was never going to stop, this feeling would never leave. I was still so _angry. _How could they be so callous, so unfeeling for the sacrifice that Mason made. They were cops... aren't they supposed to care for the victims, aren't they suppose to want to catch the bad guys?

When my legs wouldn't move any further, I reached out at held the closest tree.

"AARRGGHH!" I screamed. Finally my tired, shaky legs gave out and I fell to the ground where I sobbed for the train wreck that had become my life and for the loss of Mason. He was gone... Why did he have to do that?

I punched the ground in frustration as I yelled, but it wasn't enough... I kept punching over and over again; I couldn't seem to stop myself.

"WHY?" I screamed. I leant forward, my head resting against the tree I'd grabbed before and yelled as I punched it. The anger had now faded into frustration and grief, my heart shattered even more than I ever thought was possible.

I hadn't realised I wasn't alone until I was pulled away from the tree and my wrists were locked in tight hands. I tried to fight against my captor...

_Not again! _

I screamed and thrashed and kicked but I couldn't get away. When the voice finally cut through the fog of grief that cluttered up my brain and I realised who was with me, I stopped fighting and cried.

"Rose... Don't be afraid, it's alright, it's alright."

I turned my red, puffy eyes to look into the brown eyes beside me.

"Shh..." He turned me slightly as he pulled me in between his legs, my side against his chest, hugging me tightly as I cried. I couldn't believe how safe I felt in his arms. I had no fear of him at all.

"How did you find me?" I asked him as I started to settle. It was then that I noticed that his T-shirt was wet from my tears, probably with a little snot added to the mix too.

"I was sitting at one of the picnic tables by the lake when I saw you rushing past. I called out to you when I realised you were upset but you didn't hear me, so I followed you. I'm glad I did now."

So was I...

"What's wrong, do you want to talk about it?" He asked gently.

"Not yet." I whispered against his chest. He held me a little longer before I felt him touch my hand.

"Your hands..." He swore in Russian, I knew what he'd said because I'd learnt a few words from Adrian and if I didn't feel so sad I probably would have laughed at hearing his swear. I looked down and saw the damage. My knuckles were covered in open wounds and bleeding, the swelling had already started... they were going to be useless tomorrow.

"Had I known, I would've worn gloves." I always tried to cover pain with humour.

"Funny. Your hands really need to be cleaned up before infection gets in."

"Sorry, forgot the first aid kit when I left the house." I looked up to see him smiling at me. _He's breathtaking... _

"Well, lucky for you I have one in my car."_ God, I loved his accent..._

"Huh! Badass fighting God, Yoga guru and Boy Scout all wrapped up in one... Your one of the few males I've met that can actually multi-task. How have you not been snapped up yet?"

He let out that glorious laugh again, which made my mood lighten considerably.

"Oh there's been plenty of snapping Rose; I just haven't liked the fish at the end of the line." _Oh, that could be a good thing... or not!_

"Really, are you gay?" _Oh... diarrhoea's back..._ "Sorry... Brain filter's on the blink." At least it kept him laughing.

"That's fine... and to answer your question, no, I'm definitely not gay." _Well that's good to know... _"Come on; let's clean up your hands shall we."

He helped me stand up and we walked back to the picnic area that was next to the car park. He led me over to a tap to wash the dirt and bark off my hands; when I asked why he didn't just use the water in the lake, he said it was because of the bacteria in the water... Who would have thought...? _Gorgeous, multi-talented and brainy..._

After they were clean we could see that there wasn't as much damage as we thought. There were no cuts that would require stitches but I knew that by tomorrow, I would be in agony. He made me sit on a bench and went to get the first aid kit from his car. He squatted down in front of me and took one of my hands in his and started to wipe them with some sort of iodine stuff.

"I hope they heal by Friday." I said offhandedly.

"I think they will for the most part but either way, I don't think you'll be doing any hitting of any kind."

As he worked, I got a memory flash, a night my mother came home with her hands all banged up. I was so upset; I hated seeing her like that. Over time I noticed her hands got harder, rougher and more calloused. Now her hands slightly resembled a man's hands. Her chosen profession of security meant a lot of training and times where she had to defend those she guarded and herself against people who wanted to hurt them.

"They're going to look like my mother's hands." I mumbled this more to myself, but Dimitri answered me.

"Is that a bad thing?" He asked as he started to rub some Neosporin into the wounds.

"You don't know my mother." I said this a little harsher than I normally do, but after recent events, I was starting to realise just how much I resented her.

"I'm gathering you don't like your mother."

"What gave it away? Let's just say that normally for people to like one another; they'd need to spend time together. At least be there when it counts..."

"Well, I'm sure she has her reasons for being the way she is." He said looking up at me. His warm brown eyes locked with mine and I felt like he was looking deep into my soul. My heart tightened in my chest, I had to stop feeling this way around him.

"Yeah, she loves her job more than her own daughter and left me to be raised by my friend's families and school. That's her reason..." I was sort of getting lost in the feeling of him rubbing my hands.

"Mom's always love their kids, sometimes there are reasons as to why they can't show it." I didn't want to hear that, there was no reason that could ever warrant how she's treated me so I changed the conversation.

"You're close to your mom, aren't you?" I could tell by his eyes that he did.

"Yeah, she means the world to me, as do my sisters." I'm glad at least one of us had a mother who loved openly.

"What's your father like?" He asked as he started to wrap some gauzy bandage around my knuckles.

"Well... where my mother is physically there but emotionally unavailable, he shows he cares in his own way but is physically unavailable; always away for business. So really it's like I've never had either parent. What about your dad?"

"He was a prick and hurt my mother so when I was fourteen and had a year of Tae Kwon Do under my belt, I took him on. He didn't do so well with someone who could fight back." I couldn't stop the grin that spread across my face.

"Tell me you punched him into next week..."

"Next month..." he said laughing. He'd finished with my hands but he hadn't let go nor made any move from his position in front of me.

"Wow, you really are a God."

He blinked. "What?"

"Uh, nothing." I could see he was puzzled with the God comment but he was letting it go for now.

"Well," he said glancing down to his wristwatch. "Are you hungry?"

"Is the Pope catholic?" I joked... I was rewarded with yet another smile...

"What would you like for lunch? My treat." He said as he let go of my hands and stood up in front of me.

"You don't have to do that. I'll just go home, I'm sure Mrs D will have something in the fridge."

"Mrs D?" I asked.

"Yeah, Lissa's mom. I live with them now... sort of."

"You don't sound too sure."

"It's a recent thing. After... what happened, I went home from hospital to find my normally absent father had come home and I wasn't in any shape to be around him, or my mother for that matter. Lissa's parents said I could stay with them and Mr D keeps his distance."

"Well, I'm sure they won't mind if I feed you for once." He held out his hand, waiting for my answer. Of course I'd say yes... I reached out and took his hand and he led me over to his car. "I don't know too many places around here yet. What do you recommend?"

"Do you like Chinese?" It was my favourite and I hadn't had it for ages.

"I do... Point the way."

We ended up taking lunch back to his mom's house. Apparently she and his sisters were all at work. Probably the only house in the country where I'd feel totally comfortable with all house members present and they were all out.

It was a good afternoon, Dimitri and I spoke about all sorts of things. I ended up telling him about Mason and what had happened the night of the party, right up to the police interrogation this morning. He was quiet as I told my story, never interrupted, but instead of showing pity for what I'd gone through he told me that he'd help me regain my independence. He said he'd work with me, train me one on one... starting in the morning. He was going to pick me up before breakfast and get me 'fighting fit' in no time...

"Thanks for lunch Dimitri and for listening." I said as we finished talking. It was now 4pm and I knew everyone would be worried about me, I had to go back.

"It's my pleasure Rose. But I warn you, I won't go easy on you tomorrow." He said smirking at me.

"I can handle it."

His smile got bigger. "I know you can." Just then the front door opened up, I couldn't see who it was as all I could see was a pair of legs under a large number of brown paper grocery bags.

"Mama... Let me help you." _His mother? What will she think of me being here... alone with her son?_

"Thank you Dimka." _I know that voice... who is that?_

Dimitri grabbed two of the bags from his mother's arms but I still couldn't see her as she bent to her side to put her handbag onto the floor. As she stood up she must have seen me out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh shit!" She yelped as she almost dropped the bags in her arms... "Rose?"

"Olena? What...?"

"Mama?"

"Dimitri? What's Rose..."

It was almost hysterical really. We all obviously knew each other yet we were all so confused.

_Hang on... Mama? Olena the nurse is his mother? _

"You're Dimitri's mother?"

"Last time I checked." She said smiling. "Well I must say Rose; you are the last person I thought would ever be standing in my lounge room."

"That makes two of us." I looked back to Dimitri who had a very sheepish look on his face.

"Let me put these in the kitchen." Olena said.

"Let me mama." She gladly handed over the last of the bags and told Dimitri to put the cold things away.

"Are you alright? Not that I'm not happy to see you but why – how are you here, with my son?"

"Uh... Why? Well I've had a rough morning and he sort of found me by the lake." She looked down at my bandaged hands and reached out for them. "Dimitri – helped me. As to how? Well it seems that the only male that can come anywhere near me is your son. He also happens to be my Tae Kwon Do instructor."

"She knows..." Dimitri said behind me. Now I know what the sheepish look was all about.

"You knew about me... before?" I asked him.

"No." He said quickly. "Come over here." He held out a hand and led me over to one of the lounge chairs. "After that first class, I came home in my uniform. Mama didn't know that I'd started taking classes yet as Alberta had only just got in contact with me the day before. I'd brought up that you had taken a kick and mama sort of panicked. That's when I knew that she knew you somehow. When I asked, she said she couldn't talk about it. That's it..." I watched his eyes the whole time he spoke to me and I could see he was telling the truth so I smiled to let him know I believed him.

I looked up to Olena's smiling face but before I could ask anything, I remembered what time it was.

"Oh crap! I have to go; they'll all be worried about where I am."

"Let me get my keys." Dimitri said as he stood up with me. Once he walked into the kitchen I looked back to Olena.

"I'm glad you have someone to talk to Rose, and my son is a very good listener."

"Yes, he is." Just then Dimitri came back shaking the car keys in his hand.

"I'll be back shortly mama." Dimitri said as he kissed his mother's cheek.

The closer we got to Lissa's house the more nervous I got; of course Dimitri noticed.

"Are you sure you don't want to go somewhere else for a while? I don't mind." _He was so nice..._

"No, well yeah... but no, I have to go back. I don't want to worry them anymore than I already do."

As we pulled up in the driveway of Lissa's house, there was a moment of unease before Dimitri leant over to open the glove compartment. He pulled out a pen and a notebook and started to scribble something down.

"Here, this is my cell, if you need anything whether it be to talk, to scream or someone to come get you – call me okay, no matter what the time, even if it's three in the morning." He reached out to hand me the piece of paper he tore out from the little book. As I took it from him, he took my hand in his. "If you ever feel this frustrated again..." he said as he gently ran his thumb over my bandaged knuckles, "...call me first and I'll give you something softer to hit than a tree; I'll even give you some gloves."

I softly laughed at his gesture. As much as I loved my girls, even they couldn't pull me out of my funk like this man could. My heart skipped a beat as his other hand reached up and took a lock of my hair and twisted it between his fingers. I froze... He had a thoughtful look on his face like he was remembering something. Coming out of his thoughts, he let my hair go slightly embarrassed.

"Don't let anything make you feel like you can't let it all out in front of me. I know what it's like to feel that all consuming anger. And I know it needs to come out sometimes, let me show you how to channel it into something positive."

I noticed instantly what he'd said. What had happened in his life to make him feel the same rage that I did? Maybe he really was the only person who could understand my sometimes suffocating feelings.

I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye and saw Liss coming out of the front door. She looked worried. I quickly shoved the piece of paper into the front pocked of my denim shorts and said thanks for all he'd done for me before I hopped out of his car.

"Rose..." Liss whimpered. "Are you alright?" She wrapped me in a tight hug and as she pulled back she grabbed my hands. With shock, she looked down at the bandages.

"It's alright, I'm fine... I promise." I said hurriedly before she could get too upset.

"What happened?"

"I had a lot of... emotions. I sort of lost it." I remembered Dimitri helping me and looked back over my shoulder to see him still in the driveway. "Dimitri found me and cleaned me up."

She looked away from me to where Dimitri was in his car and mouthed the words 'thank you'. He gave a nod and then reversed out onto the road. After he was out of sight, Liss took me back inside where her parents were sitting in the lounge room.

"Rose!" Mrs D exclaimed when she saw me. "Where have you been?"

"I'm so sorry, I just needed... I couldn't stay. I'm sorry I worried you. I..." I rambled.

"I understand sweetie, I really do. I'm just glad you're..." Then she saw my hands... "What happened?"

"After what those cops said, I was just so... _angry_. I ran, I thought it would help, but it didn't. I found myself near the lake and I knew somewhere that I could go just to – scream, to let it all out. I ended up hitting a tree." Her face looked pained; she had no idea how to help me.

"Did you go to the hospital?"

I explained how Dimitri found me and cleaned me up and both she and Mr D were both shocked about how I could be around Dimitri. They took this as a good sign, I still wasn't so sure.

"I rang Dr Markov to see if she could see you a little earlier, I thought you might want to talk to her. She said that you could call her when you got home." I was due to see my therapist in two days, but after today, I thought Mrs D's suggestion was probably a good thing.

"Yeah, I think I will. Thanks..." She gave a quick nod and said that she had to put the roast in the oven for dinner tonight. I gave Liss a hug before going to my room to make the call.

=x=

"Hi Rose." Dr Markov said when she heard it was me. "How are you?"

"I've been better."

"What happened? I'm gathering that by ringing me, you want to talk about it?" _Did I?_

"I just got so angry..." I blurted out. "I never get this angry... What's happening to me?"

"Rose, your anger is perfectly normal. Your attack has made you feel scared; of people known _and_ unknown to you. You weren't this person before and it's a feeling that makes you feel weak. Your anger is born from those feelings of helplessness and fear."

I understood what she was saying, but I didn't like it. Did that mean that I would be this angry all the time now? "I hate feeling this way. I want my life back." I said as I let out a little sob.

"I know you do and I'll help you get it back, I promise. Do you want to come in for an emergency session tonight, or tomorrow morning perhaps?"

"No... I'll wait till Thursday. Dr Markov, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course Rose..."

"What do you think it would mean if I found myself able to be near a man without freaking out?"

"I would think that meant that we were having progress, why?"

"What if it was just one particular man?" There was silence on the other end while she thought.

"While still fearing other men?"

"Yeah."

"Have you come across someone who you can be near Rose?"

"Yeah I have. It's my Tae Kwon Do instructor."

"I thought your instructor was a woman?"

"It was... her father is dying and she found a replacement. He's..." I didn't know how to describe my feelings.

"How does he make you feel?"

"Safe." I said without hesitation. "He makes me feel safe. It's like... I've known him all my life, yet I know nothing about him." I took a few seconds to gather what I had to say. "I know this is probably going to sound stupid and childish – naive... but it's like my soul knows him. I don't know how else to describe it."

"I think you described your feelings very well Rose, but don't ever think that your feelings are stupid. They are what they are. Acknowledging them takes a lot of courage and maturity, not everyone is able to do that. What made you angry?"

I was feeling better before she asked this last question.

"I had the police come out this morning." I waited to see if she'd ask anything else but she didn't... she wanted me to spill. "They... I felt like they were accusing me of, I don't know... being at fault in the whole thing. Like I instigated it or something. One of the bitches even had the gall to say that Mason's death was '_unfortunate'... _Unfortunate... what the _fuck_ would make her say that?" I was now yelling, the rage returning.

"Rose... calm down..."

"I could have _killed _her!" I screamed. "I wanted to pound my fist into her face and show her how '_unfortunate' _it would be for her pretty face to be _smashed_..."

I was shaking and panting... I couldn't talk anymore... I let out a half yell, half growl as I threw the cordless phone against the wall where it broke into pieces. _Shit! _

"Shit, shit, shit!" I was losing it again... Detective 'Bitch face' flashed in my memory along with Jesse, Ralf and Aaron... I wanted to kill them all, or at least pummel them into next week... next month... _Dimitri._

I reached into the front pocket of my shorts and looked at the piece of paper as I heard knocking on my bedroom door.

"No..." I whispered.

* * *

**Authors Note: Next chapter will be one of Dimitri's outtakes... I hope you enjoy it... I have loved your reviews, and thank you for your suggestions. Do'B, I loved your review... You brought a smile to my face... Thanks for reading guys, don't forget to let me know what you think.**


	12. Dimitri To The Rescue Outtake 2

**Okay, Sorry this chapter is late. But here it is... I will try my best to get the chapters up a lot faster soon as hubby is going back to work next week... (That sounds bad hey!)  
****:-) But, anyway... I hope you like it and please, please review... I love to hear what you all think of the story.**

**Sandy**

* * *

**Dimitri to the Rescue– outtake 2**

Monday... After everything I'd learnt about Rose and seeing her at the lake, I woke up this morning determined to help her get her life back. Getting close to her would just be an added bonus. I don't know why I feel this way; no-one has ever made me think about them like this... well, apart from... I could be just a friend, I could do that.

I went over my class plan for tonight before heading out for some interviews. I had to find out what was out there. I'd be more particular where I worked this time, for all involved; I had to be more... careful.

The first two companies I went to took on customers that were less than ideal. The third company was a little more up my alley. The head woman was a tough piece of work. One look at her and you could tell that you'd take your life in your hands picking a fight with her. I told her some of the things I've done and where and she seemed impressed, but I was soon beginning to understand that her idea of 'impressed' was an eyebrow lift... I noticed she had no wedding ring; it didn't surprise me really. It would take one tough son of a bitch to be her partner in life!

I'd told her a little about what brought about the demise of my last position and she was understanding of my need for a little time off. She said that if I was interested in taking on the position, I could come do a shift and make sure I was ready to come back. I think it would be a good thing for me to do.

On the way home from the interviews, I got a call from my mother. Apparently my sister's school rang to say that she was sick and needed to be picked up.

"You look like hell Vikki."

"Gee, thanks bro, nice to know you're always there to make me feel better." She was such a grouch when she got sick.

"Well you do, would you prefer if I lied to you?"

"Yes, I would. I need some cold medicine; can you stop off at the drug store on the way home please?"

"Where is it?"

"Mama either goes to the one at work or at the mall."

"Well, I'm not going to double back to the hospital, the mall it is."

It only took us a few minutes before we pulled into a parking spot at the mall. Since my last job, places like these made me feel uneasy. Most sayings in life are true, other than the one about there being 'safety in numbers'. That one I knew was definitely _not _true in all cases; I knew that from personal experience.

"Lead the way sis." I said as we walked through the automated doors. The air conditioning was a welcomed relief at least. Vikki got what drugs she needed as well as a very large box of tissues and a hot water bottle. I was pretty sure we had that at home already but when I tried to tell her this, the glare I got in return told me in no uncertain terms to 'shut my mouth'...

"You want something to eat before we go sis? I could do with something."

"Uh, not really, I'm a little 'blah' in the stomach, but I'm happy to wait for you to get something."

We went over to the food court and I went straight for the sushi bar to get myself some Tekka-maki Sushi Rolls. They were some of my favourites, apart from the teriyaki chicken ones of course. I was standing by the counter talking to my sister and waiting for my order to be filled when movement to my left caught my eye.

I couldn't believe it... she's here. Everywhere I went, she was there. My eyes narrowed as I saw her lift the hood of her T-shirt she was wearing. I could tell by her demeanour that this action was one to hide herself from those around her. She hadn't shown this side of her in class, and I didn't like it at all. I could tell by her face that she was uncomfortable, her eyes darting around the room. Her friends, without thinking, stood either side of her as they walked out.

"Who are they?" My sisters voice broke my attention and I looked back to see a very annoying, knowing grin on her face.

"Just some girls from my class. The girl in the middle has had a rough few weeks."

Just then the lady behind the counter came over with my food and we made our way back to the car.

"So what did you do this morning?" Vikki asked.

"I went for a few interviews, thought it was time to go see what's around."

"I thought you were going to take a little while longer before going back, are you sure you're ready?"

"Nothing is set in stone; I just wanted to see what is out there... Although the last place I went to was probably what I'm looking for."

We got home soon after and Vikki went upstairs to take a shower before heading off to bed. I finally ate my lunch and spent the rest of the afternoon reading. My books always put me in the right frame of mind before a class.

=x=

As I walked into the studio, my eyes went straight to the rear of the group. There she was... I said my hello's to everyone and got straight into my routine. I didn't want to make her uncomfortable by looking at her all the time, but it was a hard thing not to do. My eyes seemed to have a mind and will of their own and that will was to drink her in... I was caught out a few times, I couldn't help but smile and I felt like I was being caught with one hand in the cookie jar! I was pleased when she smiled back.

Normally I would start on the running exercises after warm up, but I wanted an excuse to get a little closer and running wouldn't accomplish that. I'd decided last night that I would get them all to do some balancing exercises instead. That turned out to be one of my more brilliant plans...

Everyone loved what I was getting them to do, and really, it _would_ benefit everyone to do this at home, it would help them all a lot. I carefully and slowly made my way closer and closer to her, talking to the class the whole way so she was aware of where I was. When I finally got to her, I knew that she'd had plenty of time to move away if she'd wanted to; but she didn't.

The exercises that I'd planned were ones I'd hoped she would fumble on, but she had excellent balance and was performing them easily. The only one that I could fault was one of the more basic yoga moves and the only thing she really did wrong was not placing her foot high enough on the other leg. I was nitpicking really, but she wasn't giving me much to work with...

I was hoping that my face wasn't betraying the inner turmoil I was feeling. I wanted so much to reach out and touch her, but again her balance was great. I told her to put her arms up and when she did, it just gave my eyes an excuse to wander... and wander they did. I followed the line of her arms down from her hands to her shoulders, from there it was only a flick to the right and our eyes locked.

_She's stunning!_

My traitorous mouth pulled up into a smile at her perfect posture just before she started to wobble... That was all I needed. I reached out placing my hands on either side of her body.

"Whoa there... Concentrate on centring your body." I said to her. Her stumble had made her bring her arms down so I used that excuse to touch her some more. "Keep your arms up, palms together." I moved my left hand up her side and the instant my hand touched the bare skin on her arm; I got that same feeling in my hand and arm from before... electric! When I felt her skin prickle, I wondered if she'd felt it too.

"That's it. Now, hold for as long as you can." As much as I didn't want to, I made myself pull away from her. I was pretty sure she didn't like to be touched and I didn't want to push my luck by being to touchy-feely with her. I could see that her breathing had increased from before I'd touched her, so I forced myself to do the right thing.

"Thank you." She said softly. I may have been able to will my hands away, but my eyes... the eyes with a will of their own, wouldn't look away.

"I have a feeling that you are going to be one badass fighter Rose." _Be good, be good, be good... _I chanted as I turned away from her. I went to her friend Lissa and helped her with the pose she was doing before making my way around the rest of the room and changing into the last balance exercise. I'd always prided myself on my strong will and professionalism, but around Rose I found it constantly being tested. She was very... distracting.

I brought out the large foam block and placed it on the floor at the opposite end of the studio. This was a good exercise but I needed someone to help me demonstrate it. The thought to ask Rose was tempting, but I really needed someone who knew what to do, so I asked Julie. She'd been training with Alberta for some time so I knew she'd know what to do.

After a few of the women had done the exercise I smiled at the easy banter the girls had with one another. From what I'd seen of the little blonde one so far, she seemed like the stirrer of the three, calling Lissa a princess was quite apt I thought. When it was Rose's turn I expected a little apprehension but what I didn't expect was the look on her face and in her eyes. She seemed to freeze for a few seconds but the look in her eyes was unmistakable... she was _angry_.

Her friend Mia pulled her out of her 'thing' with a little nudge before she started running towards me. I could still see that whatever was on her mind before was still there and I was surprised by the force with which she kicked the block pad I was holding. She was strong... When she landed on her back I thought she was hurt, she was breathing rapidly and her eyes were clamped shut but she got up and went back over to her friends.

The end of the class came all too soon and I wanted to talk to Rose some more but I didn't know how to start up the conversation. When Mia said goodnight I suddenly asked if I could speak to Rose for a minute. I knew what I wanted to ask her, I just didn't know if I should. I took the chance and was pleased I did. She opened up to me somewhat but what really surprised me was when she said that I was the only guy who had been able to touch her since she was attacked. I can't describe how I felt knowing that...

When she sat beside me I was curious as to what she was doing, I knew this was a big step for her, which was one reason I sat on the floor when she walked over to me, it gave her the upper hand in the situation. I was pleased to see that what she'd been through hadn't put a dampener on her humour. It was wicked... I hadn't smiled so much in ages and it felt good to laugh again too. The fact that she was bringing this out in me only made me want to get closer to her still.

I had to hold in a giggle when she agreed that I was now less 'geeky'. Her blush was... adorable. She shocked me again when she asked me to touch her shoulder; I was more than happy to accommodate her wish, so I told her to open her eyes so that she would see my movements.

The smile that lit up her face when she realised she had no fear of my touch could have lit up the city; I could see how much it meant to her... I know how much it meant to me. What I said next came out before I could stop it. I told her to feel free to explore her limits... _Shit! Now my tongue has a mind of its own! Soon I'm going to have absolutely no control over my body at all... _My tongue kept going though, when I told her that I hoped she would take my offer of help, I prayed that I hadn't scared her away. I was a little embarrassed with my runaway mouth... I normally have more self-control than this.

I said good night and watched her walk to the door. I was powerless to stop the grin from spreading across my face at the turn of events tonight. I wanted to get closer to her and I had accomplished that and more... I was happy.

I had nothing planned for the next day so for the first time in a long time, I slept in. I woke at the sound of knocking on my door.

"Are you awake, son?" My mother said from the other side of the door. Luckily I had woken up just before she knocked and was awake enough to quickly gather up the sheet and pull it haphazardly over myself. Being the rough sleeper I am, it's probably not a good thing for me to sleep in the raw like this; anyone who just barged into my room of a morning would get an eye full.

"Come in Ma." I said yawning. I smiled when she poked her head into my room.

"I'm sorry to wake you son but its 10:30 and I thought I'd come see if you were still alive." my mother said smiling... She didn't look sorry.

"Yeah, I'm still breathing mama." I stretched out as I yawned again, my feet hanging just over the end of my bed.

"Well, I've been called in for a half shift today; one of the girls will be coming in late. I should be home well before dinner alright?"

"Okay, do you need me to get anything?"

"No, just have a good day..." but before leaving she added... "What's left of it!"

I was now awake with no idea what to do with myself, so I thought I'd go see Tasha. When I got there I found she wasn't home and then I remembered the lake. I drove around to the picnic area and smiled when I saw that there were no other cars. I walked down to one of the tables and just looked out over the water as I thought about Rose and all the things that I'd found out about her and what was said at the end of class last night.

It wasn't long before the water got a little too enticing and I knew I was the only one around so I got up and took my shirt off. I was about to push my shorts off when I noticed movement to my left.

_Of course... _It seemed I was unable to go anywhere these days without running into her. _Is the universe trying to tell me something or what? _I was a dumbstruck for a few seconds and then I realised that something was wrong, her face... she'd been crying.

"Rose!" I yelled out. She either didn't hear me or she didn't want to be around anyone, I was betting on the first thought. "Rose... wait up!" I quickly scrambled to put my shirt back on as I went to go after her. She ran into the trees and for a second or two, I lost sight of her.

"Rose, where are you? It's Dimitri... Rose!" Then I heard her...

"AARRGGHH!" The scream was... terrible. I could hear the pain in it. Panic set in and I sped up towards where I thought I heard the cry come from. I could hear crying but the sounds seemed to be almost bouncing off the trees. "WHY?" she screamed again.

_There she is..._

She wasn't far in front of me, but she was on her knees and I could see that she was punching into the tree she was resting against. My heart broke to see her in so much obvious pain. No-one in their right mind would punch a tree like that...

I threw my arms around her from behind trying to pull her away from the tree before she could do anymore damage.

"Rose... stop!" I kept yelling at her but somehow I don't think she heard me. She fought against me like a wild animal. She screamed, kicked, clawed and writhed in my arms, I don't know how, but I was able to hold onto her.

"Rose please stop, its Dimitri... Calm down, it's alright. Rose STOP!"

All of a sudden she stopped fighting, her breathing was still laboured but she at least stopped trying to bite me.

"Rose... Don't be afraid, it's alright, I've got you."

A little bit more of my heart broke when she turned her face to me, her eyes held so much sadness.

"Shh..." I whispered. I fell backwards from where I had been squatting down and pushed my legs out straight as I turned her body into mine. Wrapping my arms around her body, I let her cry. I winced a little as she knotted her fingers into my shirt; pulling at the small patch of hair underneath. Her cries weren't just a cry, they were like the floodgates had been opened and she couldn't stop. But they did... eventually.

"How did you find me?" She finally asked.

I told her how I'd been sitting at the lake ready to go for a swim and that she hadn't heard me. She was surprised at this; she really had been in her own little world... She didn't want to talk about what had upset her and as much as I knew it would help her to let it all out, I didn't want to do anything to upset her any further, so I let it go. That's when I saw what she'd done to her hands.

"Your hands... b'lyad!" She tried to cover it up by joking but I couldn't help but be angry that her life had been thrown into such disarray, that she felt that this was her only outlet. When she saw that her first joke didn't have the desired result, she tried again... This time I couldn't resist. When she asked if I was gay I laughed out loudly, but at the same time I made sure to let her know that I was most definitely _not_ gay. I'd never come across someone who brought out so many thoughts and emotions in me as Rose, she was... complex and I found myself wanting to know more about her with each passing day.

I helped her up and took her back to the picnic table I'd previously been sitting at and then I went to my car to get the first aid kit. I'd watched my mother do this to me enough times to know what to do, so I set about cleaning her hands.

I was surprised by her resentment towards her mother, I'd never felt that way against mine, I couldn't imagine why any woman would not want to love their child. I laughed at her expression when I told her about what I'd done to my father; I was perplexed about her comment though, I really wanted to find out why she thought what she did.

I thought the best way of getting her to talk was over lunch, which was what my family had always done. Our meals were always loud... So that's what I did. We ordered Chinese and took it back to my place. As I'd hoped, the food loosened her tongue and she told me about everything that had happened to her. I was so sorry that she had gone through that, but she didn't need that from me, she had others to be her 'shoulder to cry on'. From me she needed strength and healing, and I knew just how to do that. So we made plans to start training; I would make her strong, I would make her confident in herself, I would give her life back to her.

Before we could leave though, mama came home. I'd forgotten that she was only doing a half day. I was unsure if I should play dumb and make out that I didn't know my mother knew her, but I didn't want to start our friendship off with a lie, I wanted her to trust me... so I had to tell her the truth. When I told her that my mother knew about me being her instructor, she got a little defensive so I had to calm her fears.

I told her everything and I'm glad I did, her eyes bored into mine like she was trying to see if I was lying but when she smiled, I knew she'd believed me. I took her back to her friends place after she told me that she had to face things there, even though she'd rather not... Another thing that showed her strength of character. Just as she was about to get out of the car, I thought about giving her my cell phone number.

I reached over to get a pen and paper out of the glove compartment and was immediately rewarded with her scent... freesia's, cinnamon? Whatever it was, she smelt good. As I gave her the slip of paper, I held onto her hands.

"...call me first and I'll give you something softer to hit than a tree; I'll even give you some gloves."

She laughed at my joke and that's when it happened... My hands now have a mind of their own... First my eyes, then my tongue – now my hands. What's next? I reached out and twisted her hair between my fingers... hair just like...

I blinked slowly and looked down as I let her hair go. I couldn't believe I did that...

_What are you thinking... don't go there, you know what happens when you go somewhere you shouldn't._

"Don't let anything make you feel like you can't let it all out in front of me. I know what it's like to feel that all consuming anger. And I know it needs to come out sometimes, let me show you how to channel it into something positive."

Before she could say anymore, her friend Lissa came outside. Rose quickly got out of the car and I watched as they hugged each other. I could see her friend had been worried. When she said her thanks to me, I nodded and backed away knowing that Rose was safe for now.

I drove back towards home when my cell phone rang. I pulled over to the side of the road and answered it before it went to message.

"Hello." I greeted.

"Mr Belikov?"

"Yes."

"Hi, you came in this morning for an interview."

"Oh yes, hi. Is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing is wrong. I know I said that I'd leave it up to you to call if you were interested in the position but I've had one of my regulars call in sick and I have an important job in the morning, I was wondering if you would maybe like to use it to see if you'd like the job."

It couldn't hurt...

"Yes, I'd like that, thank you."

"Alright then, you need to be here at 6am sharp. Do you have a black suit?"

"Yes I do. White shirt alright?"

"Yup, that's good. Alright, I'll see you then."

With that, the line went dead. This woman was all business. I put the phone on the seat beside me and continued on my way home. I had to find what I'd done with my clothes since coming back to the States, they were packed somewhere.

When I walked in the front door, mama called out from the kitchen. I had a good idea what she wanted me for... oh well, best get it over and done with now I suppose.

"Hi mama." I said with a kiss on the top of her head. She looked up to me with one of her brows up in question. _Should I play dumb...? _"What's for dinner?" _Yup..._

She didn't move nor did her expression change, so I knew this game was going no further.

"Ask your question mama." _Nothing... _We stood looking at each other for a few seconds before I couldn't take it anymore... I was a grown man for shit sake, how can she break me so easily without saying a single word...

"We're just friend's mama." _Nothing... Crap!_

"I found her at the lake punching into a tree. Apparently she had an interview with the police and they made her feel as though she'd brought it all on herself. The breaking point came when they said that her boyfriend's death was 'unfortunate'. I cleaned her hands up and bought her lunch. I was just about to take her home when you came in..."

When I finished, she continued to stare at me and say nothing... for a little while.

"Well, thank you for telling me all that son, but that really isn't what I wanted to know." _Shit... _"I saw the way she looked at you."

"Oh Mama, she didn't look at me any particular way. She didn't..." I said when she narrowed her eyes at me. "Plus, I don't think of her like that... she's a friend, that's all."

"Okay..." she said after a few seconds.

"Oh, by the way, do you know where my suit is; I think it's packed still from the move."

"Are you starting work again?" She asked apprehensively.

"Not really, I've just been offered something in the morning to see if it's what I want to do. I'll make my mind up after that." Just then my sisters came in from work after picking Karolina's kids from childcare.

"Uncle Dimka." Paul yelled as he jumped up into my arms.

"How was school today young man?"

"Cool... We went on a trip to the museum and we saw dinosaurs and stuffed animals and planes and then we had lunch and then we..."

"Paul," Karolina interrupted. "You've got all night to tell you uncle about your day, you don't need to do it all in one breath. Come on, jump in the bath quickly before dinner."

"Oh mama..." he whined.

It had often amazed me how she could get both children bathed and dressed in less than fifteen minutes; I remember what I was like as a kid...

"Can you cut the roast please Dimitri?" Mama asked as everyone took their seats at the table. As I cut, everyone else filled their plates with the other food. Then my cell phone rang...


	13. Chapter 10 Secrets

**Hi Everyone,**

**Well sorry for the delay in putting this up, as most of you have all heard, we have been experiencing the worst flooding in Australia's history over the last week. We are on 25 acres here and the back of our property runs down to a river... We've been a little wet here! :-D**

**We had to bring the horses up and tie them to the house (which is on higher ground to the rest of the property), so they wouldn't go into the water that surrounded us. Aust is home to like the 3 most deadly snakes in the world... and they don't like having to swim if they don't have to... makes them cranky! LOL So we didn't want the horses going on the water. Our road has been lifted up by the torrent of water that went over it, but other than that... all is good here now.**

**Anyway, on with the show... and thanks for all the reviews on this story. There is a lot still to happen, lots of twists that are yet to come to light, and they will come up soon. The seeds have already been planted, do you know what they are? ;-)**

**Thanks, Sandy**

**

* * *

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**10 Secrets**

Liss was finally able to calm me down. I know I'm going to have to talk to Oksana about this on Thursday. She stopped fussing over me when her phone beeped signalling a message had come in; it was from her mother to say that dinner was ready. That wouldn't normally be a bad thing but for the fact that Viktor and Nat were downstairs too.

Up till now, eating dinner at night hasn't been a problem, even with Mr D present. He sits at one end of the table, me at the other next to Mrs D and Liss normally sits on the same side as me but up next to her father. I didn't know how I was going to feel having _them_ here.

"Hi Everyone." Liss greeted as we came downstairs.

"Hello Lissa, Rose." Viktor said. Natoli just looked between us both and gave what I guess was supposed to be a nod... must be a European version of 'hello'.

As it turned out, Mrs D was kind enough to give up the chair at the end of the table for me and her and Liss sat either side of me; Viktor beside Mrs D, Nat beside Liss. Conversation went on fluidly between everyone; I didn't say much really, I was using all my mental strength to keep my food down and stay seated. I really didn't want to be here, but I did it for Mrs D, she went to a lot of trouble.

Almost to the end of dinner, my interest was piqued by where Viktor was taking the discussion.

"I was wondering if you could do me a favour Lissa." Viktor asked.

"If I can uncle."

"Well, I'll be out and about tomorrow with business and I was wondering if you would be able to show Natoli some places around town?" Liss looked at me before answering.

"Wouldn't it be better if he stuck with Andre and Adrian? I think he'd much prefer to be with the guys than us girls, plus we really haven't got anything planned for tomorrow and then we have an appointment on Thursday that can't be changed so..."

She was a quick thinker, I'll give her that, and very politically correct while at it.

"Well, I suppose so." Viktor said before giving his son a look. "Maybe you could all go out one night to the movies or something? What about Friday night?"

"Busy." I said simply. There was no way in hell I would be giving up my Dimitri time for those two.

"Yeah sorry, we have Tae Kwon Do every Friday and Monday nights." Liss elaborated.

"Oh fair enough, well I'm sure you guys will work it all out on your own." _Yeah right! _I know he was up to something, I just don't know what it was yet. Dinner was now over and I was in no mood for desert so I made my excuses and went upstairs for an early night, it had been a long, rough day and I was exhausted. After a quick shower, I turned my TV on but soon fell asleep.

=x=

_What was going on? _

I felt heavy... no, I was being held down... My eyes sprung open as I realised that my arms were being held above my head, I tried to fight, to get away... but I couldn't.

_Why was I in my room?_

I started yelling and thrashing around trying to get out from underneath whoever was on me but I was being held tight.

"_HELP_!" I screamed. "Help me, please... _somebody_!"

"Stop fighting it Rose." _Mason? _"You want this, I know you do..."

"No... Mason, no... Please don't do this."

"Why not Rose? He said as he lifted his head from where he'd been kissing my neck. "You seem to forget that I know exactly what you're thinking. I know how your mind keeps going back to this..."

His hand was going down my stomach and I knew where he was going to go...

"No! Mason, stop it. Please..." My eyes flicked to movement behind him... Natoli! "Help me Nat..."

"Don't you _dare_ tell me to stop!" he growled bringing my attention back to him. One of his hands gripped my chin tight, his eyes were red again and his pale face was void of any emotion. "I've had enough of you telling me that, all I ever _did_ was stop! _Stop, stop, stop... _Why wasn't I any good for you Rose huh, _why_?"

"You are good Mason, you are... Just..."

"Just not good enough for you, right?" My eyes flicked back to where Nat still stood watching me.

"Please..." I cried. _This isn't my Mason._ "I'm so sorry Mase. Why did you do that? Why did you try to help?"

"I'm starting to wonder that exact same thing Rose. Why? Why did I give my life for you when you so obviously didn't give a _shit_ about me...? _WHY_?"

"Don't say that! I do love you, I do..."

"_Bullshit_ Rose. I know differently, so don't try to tell me that you did. I know what you think every time you get around that giant; how your body reacts to him."

"There's nothing going on Mason, nothing. We're only friends, please don't Mase..." I pleaded as I felt him pull my pants down. _Why was he doing this? _As I felt him at my entrance, I panicked; I had to get away...

"Rose!" I felt my shoulders being gripped hard... I had to get away. My hands were now free so I let go with everything I could, I had to get away. I swung with everything I could and felt my hand strike... I was free...

I jumped off my bed and ran... I didn't get far before I ran into something hard and ended up falling backwards onto the floor. I looked up and through my blurred vision I saw Mr D crouching down to me. _Mr. D?_

I scurried backwards along the floor, my heart racing and hot tears now streaming down my face. _What in the hell is going on?_

"Where is he?" I asked while my eyes darted around the room.

"Where's who Rose?" he asked me.

"Mason... Where's Mason?" He worriedly glanced over to where Mrs D was squatting on the floor with Liss... _What's wrong with Lissa?_

"What do you mean Rose? Mason... isn't here." Mr D was squatting down a feet from where I now sat. Then I realised... _A dream... _

I looked back to Liss and heard her sniffle but she had her back to me. "Liss, what's wrong?"

"You were having a nightmare Rose." Mr D said pulling my attention back to him. "She tried to wake you up." I tore my wild eyes away from him and back to my sister and friend...

_Oh shit... That was her! It was her I hit out at..? I punched her, Oh God..._

I crawled over to where Lissa sat with her mother. "Liss, oh God Liss... I'm so sorry." I cried as I stroked her hair.

"It's alright Rose." She said with her eyes closed. I heard Mrs D ask her husband to go and get a bad of frozen peas... "I know better than to try and wake someone in a nightmare, especially someone whose arms are striking out all over the place."

"Are you alright Rose?" Mrs D asked.

"No..." I whispered. Just then I heard the phone ringing downstairs.

"It's 5 am, who on earth would be ringing at this hour?" Mrs D wondered, the same thought crossed my mind for a second, but I was more worried about what I'd done to Liss. I felt terrible. Within minutes Mr D came back into my room.

"Who was that on the phone Eric?" Mrs D asked.

"Someone for Rose. A... Dimitri?" _Oh... our training. _"...he said to tell you that he wouldn't be able to meet for training this morning but if you still wanted to start today, just to send him a text and he'd meet you after five this afternoon."

"What training?" Liss asked as she held the peas to her nose.

"Ah, after yesterday he said that he'd train me every morning. You could come too if you'd like." I said sheepishly.

"I don't think so... I like what we're doing now; I don't feel the need to do anything else."

"Are you sure you're alright Liss? Should I take you to the hospital?"

"No, it's just a little sore. You didn't break anything, I promise." With that her father helped her up off the floor and then left to go get ready for the day. Liss and her mom went to get some pain relief from her mom's private stash. I was going to have a shower but I was still so rattled from the nightmare, so I went downstairs to go grab a donut... I needed a sugar fix. As I got closer to the kitchen I could hear voices...

"I won't push it Father." I heard Natoli say.

"You know what is going on son and you know what needs to be done; I expect you to do your part."

_What's happening...? _I thought to myself.

"What makes you sure that it will all work out the way you want anyway?"

"It may not, but if I think it's not going the way it needs to, then I'll do what has to be done to make it so. Is that coffee ready yet?"

_What on earth are they talking about? _It was all so cryptic. I didn't know what to make of their conversation.

I saw Mrs D coming down the stairs so I went over to meet her, she was confused as to why I was standing where I was until she heard who was in the kitchen.

"Do you want me to get you something Rose?" She asked.

"Ah, no... I was going to get a donut but I think I'll wait. I'll just go have a shower I think."

"Alright. They won't here for long, give it half an hour or so." I nodded to her before going back up to my room. At least a shower would give me some time to think about what I'd heard the Dashkov's talking about.

When I came back downstairs forty minutes later I walked straight to the kitchen. After my failed attempt at breakfast earlier on, I was now ravenous. Before I reached it though, I heard a familiar voice coming from the direction of the games room.

"Well, thanks for the chat guys but I'm late." I heard Viktor say. I thought he'd be gone by now. "Natoli, remember our _chat_... I expect you to deal with it today, alright."

"Yes father, I will."

A few seconds later I heard the front door open and close. One down... one to go!

"What was that all about?" Andre asked him.

"Oh, one of dad's business deals. He just found out that the company I've got an internship with is the one that he's trying to get into business with. He wants me to put in a good word about his company while not letting on that I know him."

"Won't the surname sort of rat you out?" Adrian said.

"Well, I'm sort of going by my mother's maiden name for work. My family name carries with it certain expectations and I didn't want to deal with that shit, I had enough of that at school, so no-one there knows my relationship to him."

"Does your father know about this?" Andre asked.

"He does now, he didn't at first. He answered a call on my cell last night from my new boss' secretary, that's how he found out who I was working for, and then all of a sudden, my surname preference didn't matter so much. He actually saw it as a good thing..."

_So, is this what they were talking about in the kitchen this morning...? _

I walked off and finally made my way to the donuts; they were worth the wait... Mrs D makes the _best _donuts. I was a few bites into the second one when I got company.

"Hello Rosebud!" I stiffened as I heard Adrian's voice. "Don't worry little D, I won't come near you." Of the two nicknames he called me, 'Little D' was the one I preferred. He thought of it after the first time he heard me calling Lissa's parents Mr & Mrs D... He said I was close enough to being a Dragomir anyway...

"I'm sorry Adrian, it's not you..." I was sorry, I knew he liked me and would never hurt me... it was just...

"Ah, the age old "It's not you, it's me" line hey... I know." He said as he sat at the small breakfast table. "I'm sorry about Mason and I'm sorry you've had to go through all that you have, but I know you Rose... you're tough and I know you'll get through this." It was the most serious I'd ever seen Adrian but what pleased me the most was that he didn't pity me for what had happened. He's normally snarky or sarcastic or just plain obnoxious... sometimes all three rolled into one. But then he had to go ruin all his good work by continuing... "Plus, I have a full night planned for our wedding, so I need you better by then!" _There he is..._

"In your dreams lover boy!"

"Oh, you are... every... night! And you're wonderful..." His green eyes sparkled deviously. Adrian was absolutely gorgeous and he was the subject of so many of my dreams growing up, so it was hard to deal with when he would flirt with me like this. "So how are you dealing with the 'house guests'?"

"As little as possible." I said thankful for the change in conversation.

"You could always come over to me if it gets too crowded over here my sweet. I could make all thoughts of them disappear."

I narrowed my eyes in frustration at him. "You do know its guys that I have a problem with, don't you Adrian?" His smile faltered a fraction when he looked behind me.

"So, is that why you and Liss were so close growing up Rose...?" Nat said as he walked into the kitchen behind me. "Here I thought I was doing something wrong." I spun around to face him as my body unconsciously moved as far away from him as possible. "Why wasn't _I_ any good for you Rose?" I could feel myself retreat into myself at those words... words that Mason had just said in my nightmare...

"Natoli... don't." Adrian said seriously.

"I'm only joking... shit..." I didn't miss how his eyes dragged up and down my body as he made his way over to the table where Adrian sat. "So, what's the plan for today? The girls don't want to do anything, so they palmed me off to you guys."

Adrian's eyes glanced to me as if he was working out a puzzle, before answering Nat. I had to get out of here... Without saying anything, I walked out of the kitchen... leaving the donut on the floor where I dropped it. I could hear my name being called out but my chest felt like it was being crushed, I could hardly breathe... As I came out of the kitchen, I took a sharp right and pushed my way through the French doors of the formal dining room that led out to the yard... and then I ran... again.

The whole time I ran, the nightmare played over and over in my mind. It was like Mason's ghost was pushing into my head, haunting me until he could drag my soul into the land of the dead with him. I was the only one who could see him, no-one else would believe me if I told them.

I soon found myself at the diner and all I could think of was that this was where I first saw Dimitri. Dimitri... I put my hand into the small pocket at the front of my jeans and my fingers touched the piece of paper that was there. I pulled it out and looked down at the flowing script of his name and number. His penmanship was almost as beautiful as he was. I needed to talk to him, he said I could any time of the day, but I had no money with me. I looked through the diners windows and saw Celeste behind the counter.

"Hey Rose, what brings you in so early this morning?" She said smiling, that was until she saw my face. "Are you alright hon?"

"Yeah, just a rough morning Celeste. Ah, I need to make a call but I don't have any money on me, can I borrow some change?"

"Yeah, of course." She said as she pulled a coin out of her pocket. "Are you sure you're alright?" she said when she saw the bandage on the hand I held out.

"I'm good, thanks." She gave me a nod and walked back into the kitchen. There were only a couple of people here for breakfast, but I knew that it wouldn't be long before this place would start to fill up. I walked back outside and made my way over to the public phone. I hesitated to call him for a few seconds but he did say to call him, so I quickly dialled before I chickened out...

After a few rings, his smooth voice came down the line..."Hi, this is Dimitri. I can't take your call right now, please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can." _BEEP! _I wasn't sure if I should leave a message or not but the words tumbled out anyway...

"Ah... it's ah... Rose. Um... I just – sorry." I quickly hung up. _Of course he's busy Rose... his life doesn't revolve around you... He's probably having breakfast with that woman you saw him with. _I squeezed my eyes shut when I realised what I'd just done... "I'm sorry Mason, I only need someone to talk to, I'm sorry..." I whispered. When I opened my eyes again, he was standing in front of me. "Mase..."

He didn't move... he didn't try to speak; he just stared at me... coldly, before fading away. I took off as fast as my legs would carry me, I had no idea where I was going, I just needed to get away from here as fast as I could. Hours later as I sat at the picnic table at the lake, I heard the sound of car tyres on the gravel of the parking lot.

"Rose..." I looked up to see Lissa and her mother walk towards me. I hated myself even more then... I'm always making them so worried, between my diminished weight, nightmares and mood swings, I could see what having me around was doing to them. My disappearing acts weren't helping matters either. "Where have you been?" Liss asked softly.

"Out and about."

"What happened?" Mrs D asked. "Adrian said that it was something Natoli said. He said your face went white as a ghost after he said something and you ran out soon after." _Ghost... yeah, they were white..._

"I can't remember." I lied... I could see that they didn't believe me, but Mrs D held her hand out and then took me into her arms.

"Come on, let's get you home." Thankfully, everyone was gone when we finally arrived back at the house. I was exhausted... again, so I went up to my room where I promptly fell asleep. I woke up hours later and saw that it was nearly 11pm, I'd missed dinner. I was a little hungry so I tiptoed downstairs to the kitchen. Everything was dark but I soon found the stash of chocolate bars that I'd hidden in the back of the fridge.

The next morning I woke up from yet another bad dream, thankfully Mason didn't come to terrorise me this time. I showered and changed and made my way downstairs to eat breakfast before my meeting with Oksana. Coming into the kitchen, Liss and Mrs D smiled at me.

"You had a phone call last night Rose." Mrs D said.

"Dimitri..." Liss explained. "He was worried after he got your message. He tried to ring here but no-one was home and he couldn't get hold of you. I had to tell him what happened and he said if you wanted to talk later, to give him a call."

=x=

"I think we need to talk about it Rose." Oksana said gently. Mrs D had told her about the nightmares when I first came here and up to now, Oksana hasn't pressured me into speaking about them or Mason in any real depth... We'd hedged around Mason of course, kind of hard not to when what happened to him was such a big part of my problems, but I had a feeling she wasn't going to back down this time.

"What do you want me to say Oksana?"

"Rose, your anger at what the detectives said was perfectly understandable. It's the way you handled the situation that we need to talk about. We need to speak about Mason and your feelings over what happened to him."

_Talking about it wasn't going to change anything, he'd still be dead! _I thought.

"I'll tell you what... I'll let you in on what I think so far and if you think I'm right, then we'll talk about it a little deeper okay." I just stared at her. "You have a lot of emotions going on right now... I know, just hear me out..." she said holding up a hand.

"First of all, fear. Fear over what happened to you, anger... over your loss, and I'm not talking about Mason just yet, I mean loss over your life- the life you had before, your plans and your control over it all."

_So far so good..._

"Guilt is another emotion that is coursing through you." she continued. "Guilt over Mason and his death as well as anger over his death."

"I'm not angry over his death..." I interrupted.

"I think you are, and it's only natural. You're angry that he made that sacrifice, you're angry that he left you. And finally... more fear. You're scared that you didn't deserve his loyalty and all of these 'out of control' feelings are manifesting themselves into your dreams." She sat back in her chair and let me think about what she'd said for a minute before speaking again. "You're also angry at the boys that attacked you. They may not have achieved what they were after, but what they did achieve was just as bad. They are responsible for the life you were about to lead being taken away from you, they are responsible for taking Mason away from you, and stealing his life away from him. They also stole the security you had in your own home..."

By this time tears ran down my cheeks like Niagara Falls... Sobs ripped from my chest as I wrapped my arms around myself... Every word she spoke was exactly what had been going through my mind but I was too afraid to acknowledge them. She came around and sat in the chair beside me and rested her hand on my shoulder in comfort. She knew I needed a show of strength while allowing me to still hold myself up. After my crying calmed down and I regained a modicum of my self-control, Oksana managed to get me to speak about my latest nightmare about Mason.

"Why is he trying to hurt me in my dreams? That's not my Mason, he'd never hurt me."

"I think something is going on in your life that you feel guilty over, something you feel betrays Mason and the sacrifice he made for you." _Dimitri..._

"Why do I get so angry?" I asked, trying to move the conversation away from him. "I have never felt so much rage in all my life. It's like this black, swirling cloud builds up in my body until I can't focus on anything else. It's like it consumes me... blotting out everything around me, and then I do things like this..." I said holding my hands up.

"Every emotion you have is out of control at the moment Rose. Normally we humans learn to control them from the time we're babies; you've heard people refer to the 'terrible two's' that toddlers go through... Learning how to control our emotions takes time, we're not Vulcan's from some Sci-fi show; we can't just push them down to where they're never seen again. The attack on you has undermined nearly eighteen years of learning and what little self control you have left, is hanging by a thread. It doesn't take much for those simple threads to snap.

You have to work through your memories of what happened and the feelings those memories evoke. When you do that, you will find yourself becoming more like the person you once were. I won't lie to you, you'll never be completely the same as before; they don't call attacks like these 'life altering' for nothing. But you will get through it."

By the time the session was over, I was exhausted. At least I knew a bit more of why I fly off the handle at times.

As Mrs D turned around a bend in our street, I could see a familiar car out the front.

"I wonder who's here." She said quizzically.

"That's Dimitri's car." I could tell he wasn't _in_ the car, so that only left one other place... inside. As Mrs D drove the car into the garage, Liss came through the door that led into the mud room.

"He's in the lounge room." She said with a smile. "How'd it go, you look tired?"

"It was hard." I said softly. She wrapped an arm around my shoulders and gave a quick squeeze.

Dimitri stood up as we walked in and turned to look at me.

"Oh God..." Mrs D said quietly from behind me. She spoke very softly but she was close enough to me that I heard her. When I looked at her I nearly laughed as I saw her eyes nearly bugged out of her head...

_Yeah, he's impressive alright... _I thought_, and God was an apt description..._

"Hello, my name's Dimitri Belikov." He said as he held his hand out to Mrs D.

"Hi...I'm Amy, call me Amy..." she stuttered. He flashed her that amazing smile of his and she was done for... I could see her mind had gone blank so I broke the odd silence.

"Dimitri's our Tae Kwon Do instructor Mrs D." I said. Her eyes darted to me before going back to him.

"Oh yes... that's right, the girls told me you've taken over the class. Can I get you anything?"

"No, thank you. Lissa already got me a drink of water." After a few more pleasantries, Liss dragged her mother into the kitchen under the guise of getting things ready for lunch. I couldn't help but giggle when I heard Mrs D admonish Liss for telling her that Dimitri was so good looking. I'm sure Dimitri heard her too, but he didn't let on.

"I'm sorry I missed your call yesterday, I was working." He quickly explained once we were alone.

"That's alright; I don't expect you to be at my beck and call. I didn't realise you had a job." I said sitting down with him.

"Well... I don't really, not yet anyway, I've sort of been on a sabbatical up until now. I went for an interview the other day and they rang to see if I could fill in yesterday. It gave me a chance to see if I liked it or not."

"Did you... like it?"

"It was alright. But that's not why I'm here. Lissa told me that something happened yesterday?" He phrased it like a question, probably wanting me to fill in the blanks but I'd already done that once today, I didn't have the energy to do it again.

"Yeah, but I don't really want to talk about it right now if you don't mind."

"Okay. Are you alright?" He asked as he reached out and took my hand in his and that feeling coursed through my hand and arm again. _Would his touch always do this to me?_

"No... But everyone keeps telling me that I'll get there, so that's something to look forward to I suppose."

"Yes, it is..." he said smiling. "And I'll help you."

"Why?" I blurted out. I hadn't meant to ask that... or did I?

"What do you mean? Why wouldn't I want to help you?"

"You hardly know me and I'm... you're... You probably have..." I rolled my eyes at my blabbering and put my face in my free hand. He reached out and turned my face to him.

"I told you I would be here for you and that I would help you get your life back. I _never_ say anything I don't mean." I couldn't help get this feeling that he meant something else by that.

"But why Dimitri?" _Why did I keep asking this...?_

He looked down with a slight sigh before answering "That's not an easy question to answer Rose." _Try... _"I just..."

Just then Liss walked in... I'm pretty sure I growled just a little bit... I even gave her my best 'not now' glare, but it was too late, the moment was gone and so was his hand from mine...

"Sorry to interrupt but Mom wanted me to ask you if you'd like to stay for lunch?"

I was pretty sure he would say no, but when I looked back at him, he was looking directly at me.

"That would be nice Lissa, thank you." She smiled at me before going back into the kitchen. "When would you like to start training?"

"What about your job?" I asked.

"As I said, I don't have one yet. If I decide to take it, I'll have a more set schedule and then we can plan around it. So...?"

"Whenever you want will be fine with me."

"This afternoon then."

"So soon..." He didn't answer, he just smiled. "Fine..." I grumbled.

I was rewarded with a soft laugh. "Well that was easy."

"Are you calling me easy?" I said jokingly.

"Hmm, I have a feeling that you, Rose, are going to be anything but easy. I'm pretty sure that you're going to pose a challenge for me in more ways than one." He said as he tucked a lock of hair behind my ear.

_Was he flirting with me?_


	14. Chapter 11 I Hate Him

**A/N:** Thank you to everyone who reviews this story. I'm so glad that you are all enjoying it so much. Please keep letting me know what you think and if you see I've made a boo-boo! :-)

I just thought I'd let you know that my other story, My New Life... It may take me a while to update each chapter. If any of you write, you'll all know that sometimes certain characters assert themselves... well, these ones are really loud right now and by trying to force out chapters in MNL, I'm not doing it justice. I won't stop writing it, it just will take a little longer. Sorry...

Anyway, on with the story...

Sandy

* * *

**11 I hate him...**

"I _hate_ you... Dimitri." I said puffing between gritted teeth.

"No you don't Rose." I looked up at him and growled when I saw the barely contained grin on his _not _puffing face. I wanted to wipe it off in one foul swoop!

I was barely able to get the words out; my lungs felt like they were on fire, my legs felt even worse... "Oh, I'm pretty sure... that I can say... that at this... point in time... I truly, truly... hate you."

That's when I stopped running.

I staggered a little before bending forward clutching my knees with my hands; my stomach heaving as I tried to pull air into my lungs.

"Rose, we've only run a mile and a half, you can't be this puffed yet!"

Without lifting from my position, I turned my head and glared at him. "Oh yes I can..." The sides of his mouth seemed to be giving him an awful lot of trouble; they seemed to want to move in an upward position... The only thing stopping them was his teeth – it was a little hard for the sides of his face to move when they were firmly snared between his ivories...

"Are you growling at me again?" He asked once his cheeks were released from his teeth. Now his lips were free to go where they wanted...

"Don't you dare... smile at me!" I slowly stood up placing my hands on my sides hoping that I looked mad. Only I knew the movement was so that I could clench at my sides in hopes of relieving the pain of the stitch that had me in its grip... "_Or_ laugh! I'll turn around right now... if you so much... as snicker, Dimitri Belikov."

"Finished?" He asked very unafraid... I had to use every last bit of my self control not to stamp my foot at his cockiness but that would involve me lifting my leg... the same leg that was screaming in pain right now.

"Yeah, I think I am actually." I said with as much sarcasm as I could muster all while snickering to myself, but I couldn't help it. "I've had a rough day – week... hell, I've had a rough month actually _and_ I already walked for miles yesterday. I shouldn't have done this today; I should have waited."

That was all it took... He finally laughed out loud. I was pretty sure he was laughing _at _me and not _with _me.

"Why is that funny?" I asked.

"Oh," he said his smile dropping. "You were serious."

"Yes..." _Duh..._

"Look Rose," he said crossing his arms over his strong, muscular chest. "I think I'm pretty sure that your legs are burning right about now."

_Oh, he's waiting for me to answer!_

"Burning? Ah...more like I hurt like hell...already!"

"You'll feel worse tomorrow." _Great..._

"So?"

"So, better to jump in now while you still feel...not so bad."

"What kind of logic is that?" I retorted.

"Sound logic, 'been there and done it' logic. I told you that I am going to help you and I meant it. I also told you that I wouldn't be taking it easy on you."

_Yeah, he did. _"So... what...warm and fuzzy isn't your M.O?"

"No it's not. You have others in your life for that." He stood in front of me making no apologies for not pitying me and as much as my body was screaming at me to sit the hell down; I knew I had to keep going. Failure was never in my vocabulary before, nor was taking the easy way out. I fought hard for everything in my life; this was not going to be any different. I'd never cared about what other people thought of me but for some reason I cared about what Dimitri thought. My subconscious was now standing in the full light of day, out of the shadows she once hid in – boxing gloves on and ready for a fight.

"I still hate you." I said in a last ditched effort to sound put out.

"No you don't." He said smiling. _No, I didn't... _He was my Kryptonite, I knew then and there that I would do anything he asked of me; all he had to do was say the words.

"Lead on _Master_." I said with a sweeping hand. I was rewarded with _that_ smile, a smile I'd seen only a couple of times and it made my heart beat a little harder.

"I think I could get used to that."

"Be nice and I might call you master more often, otherwise I'll call you something of less appealing connotations."

Then he did it... God I loved it when he lifted his eyebrow_... Sex-eee!_

I sucked it up and started running again; this time at a much slower pace. Thank God...

"So, why all the running?" I asked.

"Well, what if I wasn't a friend? What if I meant you harm? How would you stop me from hurting you?"

For a split second I waited for his words to frighten me, I know that if anyone else had said them, I would have broken out in a cold sweat... but I knew deep down that he wouldn't hurt me – ever!

"I'd knee you where the sun don't shine." _As much as it would kill me to hurt you..._

"Believe it or not, most men are actually aware of _that_ particular soft spot and guard it pretty well. What if you couldn't rely on kneeing him there, how would you get away?"

I tried to think of a weak point that a man of his size could have – other than between his legs... I came up empty.

"You run Rose. It's one thing to learn how to punch and kick, but sometimes running is what will save your life."

I looked up him and I saw that his eyes were as distant as his voice. I'd seen that look before at his house and I wondered what was going on in his head. We soon ended up at St Vladimir's Youth Centre and all I could do was roll my eyes. His car was sitting out front.

"I was wondering where your car was." I said.

"Now you know. Come on." He opened a door at the side of the building; one I knew wasn't a normal entrance.

"Is breaking and entering another talent of yours?" I asked as I moved past him.

"No, but my awesomeness isn't just wanted at the studio you know. I teach classes here too." This didn't surprise me really, he _was_ pretty awesome.

"Doing what?"

"Yoga and kick boxing."

"Huh! You know, if it weren't for the pain currently in my _pain_fully, rubbery legs, I might truly believe you are a figment of my imagination. No man could be as per..." _Crap! _I bit my lip before I really embarrassed myself. No way was I going to let him know how perfect I thought he was.

He lifted one eyebrow in question, like he knew what I was about to blurt out. "Care to finish that sentence?"

"No." I just ignored the grin on his face. We were now standing beside some wooden racks with varying sized weights on them and I had an idea of what he was going to have me do next. A half hour later I had arms that felt so heavy I was surprised my knuckles weren't dragging on the ground and my legs that were rubbery before were now starting to feel numb. Numbness after exercise fills one with a sense of foreboding... I was going to hurt tomorrow – bad!

"You did well today Rose. What time do you want me to pick you up in the morning?"

_The morning?_

"You really _are_ trying to kill me!" I said seriously. "After this, you want me to get up in the morning and do it all again and then somehow drag my sorry ass to class tomorrow night?"

"Yes." He said simply.

I was hoping that my face now conveyed just how true my previous statement was in regards to how much I hated him, but then I felt that he really needed to know.

"I really hate you..."

"No you don't..."

=x=

I was surprised when he turned the ignition of his car off when he pulled into the driveway, something told me he was coming inside. He had a slight grin on his face as he got out from behind the wheel and came around to my side of the car.

"I'm being nice..." he said in response to my surprised expression.

"_Now_..." I grumbled as I rolled my eyes. I eyed his outstretched hand while willing my arms and legs to move but I knew if I made them, they were going to let their opinions of what I'd just done to them be heard. "I can't move..." I caught the quick grin on his face before he wiped it away.

"Well, you can either get out yourself or I'll have to scoop you out – what will it be?"

_Hmm..? _

He obviously thought that last option he gave me would be a bad thing... My delay in moving while I weighed up my options must have been answer enough for him as he bent down and slipped his arms under my aching legs and around behind my back.

_Oh good Lord! He even smells good sweaty...and I could feel just how hard his chest was. _If his training didn't kill me, the thoughts and feelings he evoked in me surely would.

"What did you do now Rose?" Lissa asked in a deadpanned voice at the front door.

"I did nothing; it's entirely my Russian jailers fault."

"Jailer?" He said smiling. "What happened to master? You said you'd stick to that if I was nice to you and aren't I being nice by not making you walk into the house?"

By the look on Lissa's face as we passed her, I was going to be giving her a step by step recount of what had happened this afternoon.

"What happened?" Mrs D asked when she looked up and saw me in Dimitri's arms.

"Nothing Mrs D... I can stand you know." I said to him.

Once I was back on my own two feet I looked up and saw Adrian, Nat and Andre sitting on the sofas in the games room, staring at me in wide eyed confusion. But then something different crossed Adrian's face when he looked at Dimitri. Great, now he's going to think he can hug me and shit...

"Now, you're going to be pretty sore tomorrow Rose." Dimitri said. "But there are some things you can do so that will make it not so bad. Go take some pain relief and take a hot shower..."

Not wanting the walking hormones in the other room to hear about me showering, I interrupted him by taking his hand and with sore, wobbly legs I pulled him into the kitchen.

"Can we not talk about hot showers in front of those guys please, they'll never let up otherwise."

His eyes narrowed slightly before turning to look back the way we came, I rather liked the _unfriendly_ glare in his eyes he gave in the direction of the games room... "Sorry."

"That's alright."

"But honestly Rose, if you don't want to be too sore tomorrow, you have to make sure that you stretch out tonight. The shower is the best place to do it, lather up and massage all of your muscles once the heat has penetrated. A good liniment wouldn't go astray either."

_Oh, he needs to stop speaking... _Those words spoken in _that_ voice... Thoughts of Dimitri, showers, massages and lathered up soap made my mind wander to places it's never gone before... _Yum... _I shook my head slightly and quickly shoved those yummy thoughts to a far corner of my mind; I could feel my cheeks pinking up and Dimitri had a habit of reading me too well as it was. I certainly didn't want him asking what I was thinking right now.

"Yes...well, before all of that _lathering up_ can happen, I have to somehow get myself up the stairs and after my first lesson with Alberta, I'm well aware of the pain that's going to be involved in _that_ task, _and_ I wasn't as sore as I am now..."

He barely contained his smile. "Do you need another lift?"

_Yes please... _"Thanks but, I'll be right... No pain, no gain right." _See, I can be tough!_

"Well, that's what everyone says. I better be going, Mama's expecting me for dinner."

"I still can't believe Olena's you're mother," I said shaking my head. "...but then again..."

"Then again, what?"

"Well, you're a lot like your mom... when you're not going all 'Commando' on my ass that is." I was rewarded with a genuine laugh and I knew it was now my most favourite sound in the world. I'd have to find ways of hearing it again; it was the highlight of my day.

"Someone has to." He said still laughing. "I'll see you at six in the morning, so early to bed tonight; you'll need your rest."

"_Sir, yes sir!_" I yelled with a little salute. "You know... I'm not going to be able to walk tomorrow, so I may not show..."

"I'm not worried about that. See you tomorrow Rose." He said as he turned away smiling. I wanted to walk him to the front door but I couldn't, I wasn't kidding when I spoke about the stairs. _Maybe Liss could piggy-back me..._

"Bye Warden..." I yelled after him.

I was sitting on one of the kitchen stools contemplating how long it would take me to climb those bloody stairs when Liss came in and sat down beside me grinning like the Cheshire cat we all know her to be. I knew that face...

"He's trying to kill me and by doing it this way," I said indicating to my almost dead legs in mock seriousness, "...he'll get away with it."

"Maybe, but what a way to die..." She said jokingly. I started to smile but it fell away as an image of Mason flashed into my mind. I couldn't help but grimace slightly and she saw it... "Oh... I'm sorry Rose. Oh god, I didn't mean... Crap – me and my big mouth..."

"Don't worry about it Liss, I know you didn't mean anything by it."

"You are getting so much stronger Rose, I see it every day." She said with a sad smile.

_I _didn't see it; I still couldn't get near men – with the exception of one tall, dark and extremely handsome Russian and most nights I still slept with the bedside lamp on when Liss wasn't with me. I certainly didn't feel any stronger. I only really felt 'normal' when I was with Dimitri, but that wouldn't last forever. He had his own life, a man like him would probably have a life filled with gorgeous women; women his own age... like the one in the diner. How long would he be content to be in my screwed up, teenage company?

"I need a shower, I stink..."

"Yeah, I didn't want to say anything..." she said scrunching up her nose and shrugging her shoulders.

"Wanna help me up the stairs?" I asked with a wiggle of my eyebrows.

"No way... I have an aversion to other peoples sweat."

"That's not what Christian told me..." I laughed when Lissa gasped in pretend shock. "He told me that you love his version of 'Slip'n'Slide."

He actually did tell me this once, I nearly puked at the unwanted images he put into my head...

"ROSE!" She yelled.

"I know – _horrifying_ thought isn't it!" I said with mock horror and then pretended I was about to vomit! When she took a playful swipe at me, I tried to get away but forgot about my legs... As soon as they took my full weight, they started to buckle. "OW, ow, ow, ow!" I yelled in what could only be described as something between laughing, crying and moaning. Liss tried to catch me but she ended up falling on top of me onto the floor which only hurt me more...

"Aahh!" she screamed as she fell.

"OW! LEGS..." I yelled while pushing her away. "Ow, my legs... get off!"

As much pain as I was in, I couldn't help but laugh with her.

"Ow... my elbow..." Liss whined as we both rolled on the floor of the kitchen. I took a few minutes to stop laughing.

"I still need help up the stairs you know and seeing as how my legs feel even worse than they did 10 seconds ago, I think you owe me." I said with a bit of a glare.

"On one condition... you won't get sweat all over me." She said scrunching up her nose.

"Deal..."

Within an hour, we'd made it up to my room and I'd finished showering. I had to sit on the closed lid of my toilet to put my underwear on because I couldn't lift my legs... As I waddled stiff-legged to my bed, Liss tried half heartedly to stifle her amusement at my pain. I was pleasantly surprised when she offered to massage my sore muscles, although the surprise wasn't all that good once she started... it hurt like hell.

"So, are you going to continue this?" She asked.

"Apparently... he said he'd be outside waiting in the morning."

"In the _morning?_"

"Yeah... that's what I said! He's a slave driver. Now you know why I called him my Russian jailer."

I told her all about our training session as she rubbed my sore muscles and before I knew it, it was dinner time. Once I finally made my way into bed, my legs had loosened up quite a bit so I was hoping that they wouldn't be too sore when I woke up.

=x=

I woke up at 5:12am covered in sweat and my heart and head both pounding to different beats. I'd made a promise to myself that I wasn't going to let what happened to me or these rotten nightmares dictate my life anymore, I was going to take the bull by the horns and fight... Fight back, starting now... no matter how hard.

You know the saying that we don't always get what we wish for? I thought my legs hurt yesterday... this morning they were even worse, and that's not even taking into consideration of what my arms felt like. It was a quarter past six when I finally opened the front door and the pain I went through to get down those rotten stairs was almost worth the vision that stood in front of me.

"I was about to come get you, you're late."

"I may be late, but I'm here aren't I? You should be proud... or happy at least. You have no idea how long it took me to get down those bloody stairs." I did say the vision that was him was _almost _worth it right? His stifled grin was slowly picking away at said vision. "And besides, it would be a little hard to come get me with the doors locked."

"True, but I just would have called the house phone until someone came and opened the 'locked door'" he said holding up his cell phone. "Then I would have knocked on your door until you had no other option but to get out of bed to open it."

I was under no illusions that he would indeed do this and I sort of grinned internally at the thought of testing him out...

"I'm sure you would." I said evenly.

"Rose..." he said walking towards me. "I always say what I mean and mean what I say."

My mind went blank for a few seconds... "So, what's first Master?" I said after I released my bottom lip from my teeth.

"Well, with your legs so sore from yesterday I won't make you run this morning but we will be walking. Come on."

Walking? It didn't take me long to realise that we had _very _different definitions of what 'walking' meant. I would call what he was trying to make me do, a slow run.

"I thought you said walk, Dimitri?" I whined.

"We are walking. Would you care to run and find out the difference?"

_Prick!_

As much as I wouldn't let on, every minute that I walk/ran, my legs did feel better. Within fifteen minutes the stiffness in my legs waned, if not the pain and as soon as he noticed the change in my gate, he put me through some gentle stretches. We walked some more at a slightly faster pace to the lake and then made our way back to Lissa's place again. Strangely enough, I didn't want that to be it so I asked him what else we were going to do.

"Well, we could go to the Y and do some light weights if you'd like. I wasn't sure if I should push you so soon."

I was probably going to regret what I was about to say... "I need to be pushed Dimitri, if not, my fears and insecurities will overpower me and I'll quit. I can't afford to quit."

"You have no idea how strong you are Rose." He said as he pushed a strand of my hair behind my ear. "After experiencing what you have, most people would still be huddled in the dark too afraid to do anything. But here you are, ready to fight even though you know it's going to hurt like hell both physically and emotionally. You don't know how much I respect you right now."

_Respect... not quite what I'd hoped for..._

We drove the short distance over to the youth centre and Dimitri parked in the same spot as yesterday. Again we went through the side entrance but this time he entered a code into the security alarm. He pulled some foam matting onto the floor and then lowered himself down. I went over and sat in front of him and waited to see what he wanted me to do.

"I know this might sound a bit weird..." he said. "...but you did really well yesterday, you didn't quit... so I thought you deserved a little reward."

"Really... I like rewards."

He gave a little snicker and the sound made me smile back. "Here, I didn't know what you'd like, so I..." he said with a shrug.

He handed me a small box wrapped in brown paper. Puzzled and excited, I opened it up and smiled when I saw what he'd given me.

"Lip gloss? How did you know I liked lip gloss?"

"I pay attention and I noticed yesterday you didn't have any on." His words made me think that he must look at me more than I realised.

"I could have just forgotten yesterday... I could have a whole stash up in my room."

"Do you?"

"No... Thank you."

"You're welcome. I like seeing you happy." Without even thinking about it, I leapt forward up onto my knees and wrapped my arms around his neck. Initially he was a little stiff, but he quickly relaxed and when he reached around and rested his hands on my lower back, I thought I was going to die.

"I'm glad you like them." His mouth sounded like it was almost in my hair, just above my ear. "When I saw how much pain you were in when I left, I wanted to do something for you, to show that I understand what you're going through – and I wanted to make you smile."

"Yeah, I bet you couldn't believe how unfit I was either, you weren't even puffed!"

"That's not what I thought."

He pulled back slightly and looked at me with so much intensity it made my breathing stop, I couldn't say anything. His eyes were so dark and deep that I wanted to dive right in; staring into them made me feel warm all over. Slowly, carefully, those long fingers of his reached out and traced the edge of my cheekbone and moved up the side of my face. His touch produced the same tingly feeling as every other time he'd touched me and I couldn't help but shiver. He wound a lock of my hair around one finger, just like he had in the car outside Lissa's place...

Swallowing, I dragged my eyes up from his lips. I'd been contemplating what it'd be like to kiss him ever since I'd seen him in the diner and being this close... I don't know how I stopped myself, although the thought of doing exactly that, both excited and scared me, which was stupid really. I'd kissed Mason heaps of times and as much as kissing him was exciting... the thought of touching Dimitri's lips with mine was sending my adrenaline production into overdrive.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." A voice to my left broke the bubble we'd just been in. Dimitri's hand fell away from my hair as my arms came away from around his neck.

"Hi Emily, I didn't think anyone was here." He said plainly. Emily was probably a little younger than my mom, but she looked somehow familiar.

"I just got here. Sorry to interrupt..." I smiled internally when he didn't deny we'd been interrupted. "I was just going to set up for the day."

"We won't be long, just doing a little resistance training."

"That's fine Dimitri. I'll leave you to it." With that she turned and walked out of the gym.

"She seems nice." I said.

"Yeah, Emily's the manager here."

"What's her last name?"

"Mastrano, her daughter's name is..."

"Jill... She's a few years younger than me. She's a junior at St Vlad's."

"Yeah. So... weights?" he said with a nod to what I knew was behind me.

_Damn... I thought he'd forget._

For the next twenty minutes Dimitri made me do some light weights, he said he'd build the weights up over the next couple of weeks, but if I did too much now I'd only succeed in doing damage. I wasn't arguing.

After I was good and sore once again, we walked outside to his Jeep Wrangler. I actually thought it suited him rather well. I could just imagine him in tatty denim jeans, plaid shirt and cowboy boots, all he would need to complete the image was one of those long brown duster jackets. _Yumm!_

"You're kidding me right?" I asked hopefully once he started to pull out of the carpark.

"What?" he asked.

"Don't tell me you listen to this shit all the time?"

'Hungry Like The Wolf' was playing on the radio of his car and seeing what station it was on only made me shudder in the realisation that the God who Walks does actually have a fault. He likes 80's music...

"This, I'll have you know is not shit... its classic rock and roll."

"Beethoven is classic, Elvis is classic... Duran Duran; that's just... old."

"Are you calling me old?"

"If the shoe fits..."

"Well, if I'm so old... why am I the one _not_ in pain right now?"

"I hate you." I whispered.

"No you don't..." he said snickering. _Grr..._

My body tensed as we rounded the corner of our street and I saw a car in the driveway, this was yet another strange car that I'd come to recognise. The detectives were back.

"What's wrong?" he asked me.

"Do you have to be anywhere right now?"

"No, why?" Then he saw the car... "Who's that car belong to?"

"The cops..."

After helping me out of the car, Dimitri walked up to the front door one step behind me. I reached out a shaky hand to open the door but it swung open before I could grab hold.

"I didn't know how to get hold of you to warn you." Liss said as we walked into the foyer.

"That's alright Liss. I need to shower before I deal with them again though. Can you let them know?"

"Sure, do you need a hand up the stairs?"

"I'll help her up." Dimitri said as he held out his arms. Memories of his calming scent made the awkwardness melt away. Liss smiled as she nodded and walked into the lounge room.

"Thanks but I think I'll..." I said.

"It'll be faster this way." He interrupted, then he bent down and lifted me easily into his arms.

"Turn right at the top of the stairs." I said as I breathed in deeply.

"Now where?" He asked as he started to walk down the hall.

"Last door."

He bent slightly as he reached for my door handle and I couldn't help but giggle.

"You could have put me down you know. It would have been easier." I said as he walked us into my room and put me onto my feet.

"Yes... I could have." _Oh! _"I'll wait here." He said pointing to the single sofa chair at my window.

I grabbed some clothes as quickly as I could and made my way into my bathroom, where I let the hot water relax me. I was about to turn the nozzle onto the 'massage' setting when I remembered using that setting last night and what that felt like, _that_ hurt more than Lissa's massage did. When I came back out, I smiled at the sight before me. Dimitri bathed in the morning sun, reading a book _in my room!_ Hmm...

"Not what I expected as being something you'd read Rose." He said holding up the book. I took a hard look and saw that it was Anne Rice's 'Interview with a Vampire.'

"Came with the room... I don't really have the patience to sit long enough to read a whole book, especially about something like Vampires."

"Not a fantasy girl?"

_Oh... should I answer truthfully? Yeah... _I thought with a smirk.

"Oh, I love a good fantasy. I just prefer the visual kind instead of the mental..."

He was speechless... _YES! Shall I continue? Yeah, why the hell not!_

"Jean-Luc Picard... Mmm, nothing like a nice... bald... _head!_" 'Mini Me' inside my head was now taking her bows to her adoring audience who were at this very moment showing their appreciation of a perfect performance by throwing bouquets of roses at her feet. "Close your mouth Dimitri, you'll attract flies..." I said giggling.

Even though I was now walking a little easier than before my shower, I still walked stiffly to the top of the staircase. I only made it one step down before I looked back to Dimitri's smiling face. He knew as well as I did that if he didn't carry me down, I wouldn't make it to the living room until dinner time.

"Aren't you glad that I waited now?" He asked smugly.

"Yeah, I suppose you're useful for something."

"Ouch! You wound me." He said with a smiling grimace. "Are you ready?" He said suddenly serious.

"No..." I said softly as he lifted me up.

Dimitri set my feet on the floor at the bottom of the staircase and I slowly hobbled my way to where the detectives sat waiting with Liss and her parents.

"Miss Hathaway." Detective Morris greeted. Ivanson gave me a quick nod of acknowledgement before boring her eyes into Dimitri.

"This is a friend of mine." I said as I sat on the two seater sofa beside Liss. Dimitri stood protectively behind me.

"Are you over your _thing_ Miss Hathaway?" Ivanson said stonily. I'd thought about telling them who Dimitri was, but after Detective Bitch's comment, she could go jump. I didn't want them to taint our friendship with all of this... mess, any more than Ivanson already had.

"If you're asking if I can now go near males, then the answer is no." She gave me a look of disbelief. "He's the only one."

"Right..." We could all hear her innuendo. She never believed that I had a problem with men and having Dimitri here only seemed to back up her belief.

"Anyway," Morris interrupted. "...we have some news. Apparently, one of the other party goers saw Jesse add something when he mixed your drink."

I closed my eyes and swallowed loudly as the world suddenly shifted under my feet. The sound of white noise in my ears was deafening. _He was seen... he was seen..._

"Rose..." I heard Dimitri's voice in the background but I was too busy trying to slow my heart rate. I opened my eyes and found myself staring into two sets of worried eyes; one was warm brown, the other – pale jade green, the eyes of my sister.

"I'm alright." I said meekly. I took a deep breath before continuing. "So what does that mean exactly?"

"It means that now we have a witness, and normally where we find one witness in such a large gathering... we'll find more."

"Who, who saw him?" Liss asked.

"Um... a Camille Conta." Morris said after looking at her note book.

_Camille...? _

_

* * *

_

Please read the Author's note up top if you didn't do so beforehand... Thanks Sandy.


	15. Chapter 12 Is That A Light I See?

**Sorry for the delay guys... I've been laid out with bronchitis for nearly a week, still coughing... Makes it a little hard to keep typing when you can't stop coughing...  
Just thought I'd say this... These characters have very demanding voices sometimes. They take the story in some interesting directions and then I have to work out a way to get them back to where I want them to go... Can be rather annoying at times... :-)**

**Thanks again for all of your replies, you all bring a smile to my face... **

**As I've told some, there's one more Rose chapter and then a Dimitri chapter where two twists will come to light... I wonder if anyone can guess yet what they could be?  
Anyhoo... Here's a nice loooong chapter for you all,  
On with the show...**

* * *

**12 Is that a light I see?**

Dimitri left not long after the detectives, after making sure I was alright. Liss and I went out to the pool and listen to some music for a while so that I could let my mind comprehend what the cops said.

"Liss, phone..." called Mrs D from inside. A few minutes later she came back outside.

"Hey Rose, it's Christian. His aunt wanted to know if we'd like to come around for lunch by the lake. What do you think?" I almost said no, but the look of suppressed excitement on her face changed my mind, if not my mood.

"I think it's exactly what I need Liss... I could really use the change of scenery."

It felt good to see the huge smile on her face as she quickly accepted his invitation and then said her mushy goodbyes before ringing Mia to invite her as well. We didn't bother changing out of our bikinis as we'd probably go swimming in the lake anyway, and within twenty minutes, Mia was honking her horn in the driveway. Less than an hour after Christian's call, we were saying hello to Tasha.

"Hi girls... It's good to see you all, come on in." Tasha greeted as she moved back to allow us into her house. With everything that had happened in the last month, I hadn't had a chance to see where Christian was living now, only the back view that I'd seen when coming to the lake. I was impressed by the front view when we pulled up – very modern. "Christian's upstairs in his room if you'd like to go up there."

_Hmm, stairs and Christian... _"I'll wait down here." I said smiling.

"Are you sure, we'll help you up?" Mia said.

"Nah, I'll be fine." With a nod, they were both off in a flash.

"Is there something wrong Rose?"

"Oh no... I've been exercising and my legs are killing me..."

"Of course," she said with a smile. "Can I get you something to drink then?"

"A coke would be good, thanks. Your house is amazing."

"Thanks, yeah it's very me."

"That couch looks _very_ soft..." I said eyeing it off. My aching legs were tingling in anticipation of sitting in it.

"Yeah..." she said softly laughing. "It is. It's great to just veg out with a good book after a long day at work." _Huh, someone else who likes books._

A minute or two later she came out from the kitchen with two cokes and led me out onto the deck that overlooked the lake.

"Wow, what a view..." I was certainly different looking at it from this perspective.

"Yeah, it's pretty impressive hey." Just then the doorbell rang. "Oh, I invited a friend over." She said before darting back inside.

_Let it be female... _I wished as I held my breath.

I heard lots of footstep clomping their way down the stairs so I didn't hear who was at the front door but what I did hear was Tasha's greeting...

"Oh, thanks babe..." _and a kiss..._ Unless Tasha was into girls, I had a feeling that her 'friend' was going to make the afternoon far more uncomfortable than I had planned.

"Hey Rose." Christian greeted as he slowly moved towards me.

"Hey hot stuff." I said as I looked down and took an involuntary step back. I hated this anxiety that now filled my mind.

"At least you're still acknowledging my awesomeness..." he said smirking.

"Yeah well, someone has to feed your delusions..." Hot stuff was a nickname that I'd given him when he started going out with Liss. The first date he picked her up for, he came dressed up like some male model wannabe; personally I didn't think he quite pulled it off, so I asked him if he thought he was 'hot stuff' in those flashy threads – the name just stuck.

"You're looking better. It's good to see."

"Yeah, you do actually." Mia agreed.

"Thanks guys."

"Liss told us that your new trainer has been giving you a hard time." Christian said with a knowing look.

"You could say that."

"She calls him her Russian jailer." Liss said laughing.

"I'm not that bad." A deep voice said behind me.

_You've got to be kidding me..._

I turned my head slowly to see Dimitri standing at the doorway beside Tasha with a beer and grin.

"What are you doing here?" I gasped at him in disbelief.

"Oh that's right, you know each other don't you." Tasha said. "What's with the Russian Jailer name?"

"That's Rose's new name for him, he's training her now."

"Oh really?" Tasha said with a funny look on her face.

"Yes, a lot has happened and I want to make sure that Rose never feels like a victim again." Dimitri said while never taking his eyes from mine.

"Amen to that." Tasha said raising her glass.

I was already sitting at one end of the table, Christian sat at the other. Mia and Liss on my left, Dimitri and Tasha on the right, and soon everyone was in hysterics over my training sessions. I must admit, Dimitri had a way of spinning what was essentially a torture session for me, almost into a comedy show...

"I'm glad everyone finds my pain so hilarious. I'd like to see you two keep up with what he puts me through." I said to Liss and Mia.

"We wouldn't... that's what's so funny." _I was confused... _"That you actually _are _keeping up with him. You've never really been the most... _athletic_ person Rose." Mia explained. I smiled and gave a half-hearted laugh, but her words hurt. Even they saw me as weak; no wonder Jesse and his _friends _saw me as easy prey.

Conversation soon changed into more light hearted topics and the hours went by faster than they had over the last few weeks, and I soon found myself sitting the at the edge of the lake next to Dimitri while everyone else swam.

"I can't believe you're friends with Tasha." I said shaking my head in disbelief. First I find out his mother is Olena, now Tasha is his – friend, hopefully.

"The Ozera's have been family friends since before I was even born. Tasha's mother went to school with my mother, so we all grew up together in Russia. She was actually my sister Karolina's best friend in school."

I nodded, processing this new info. "Are her parents still over there?"

"No, they died many years ago. Her father was in the Russian army and died in combat and her mother died from cancer just before her eighteenth birthday. Then it was just her and Christian's father."

"You two must be close... growing up together and all." I said while watching everyone in the lake. From the corner of my eye, I saw him turn to face me.

"Yeah, we are, she's a wonderful woman." I could hear the admiration in his voice for Tasha. "She's gone through a lot in her life, overcome a lot of obstacles. If her brother hadn't found a way to leave Russia when he did, I don't think she would be here now. There are some very... opportunistic people in Russia; they can pick out people in trouble like vampires hunting their prey," _Vampires again... _"...and being an orphan in Russia, no matter what the age is... hard, especially if you're a female."

I'd seen Tasha before on the occasions she'd come to visit Christian's family, so I no longer noticed the scaring on her face, but I often wondered how it had happened.

"Is that why she isn't with anyone?"

"Sort of, she finds it difficult to trust. That's why she started learning Tae Kwon Do."

"I didn't know she did it too." I said turning to face him. "Why doesn't she train with you?"

"She has her own school on the east coast, I don't know if she's going to sell it now and open another one here or not though." I didn't know this either...

"You should go swim while there's still enough light."

"I will if you will..." he said grinning and holding out his hand to me. It only took a second to decide that swimming would entail the 'God who walks' taking off his wife beater so that I could finally see what has always been hidden under his clothes, so I quickly stood up and stripped down to my bikini. When I turned around to look at him, my little 'Mini Me' was doing a major victory dance in my head... Dimitri didn't know where to look... his eyes were wide as he blinked, his body and jaw – stiff!

"See something you like... Master?" _SHIT! Where did that come from...? Diarrhoea's back! _

"Get your ass in this water Rosemarie!" Mia yelled out.

"You didn't just call me that..." I growled. Mia laughed as she swam further into the water where a small pontoon floated. "If my legs weren't so sore, you'd be so dead right now!" I yelled at her. Just like that everyone laughed, even Dimitri but I could see that he was still thinking about my comment.

Soon, the sun was on its way down, I'd finally got the eye-fest I'd been hankering for and it was an eye-fest with a capital I... or E as the case may be... My friends and I were now on our way back to Lissa's place to get ready for our Friday night training with Dimitri – I couldn't help smiling at the thought that I get to see him three times in one day... how lucky am I?

=x=

As the three of us pulled up in the carpark outside the Tae Kwon Do studio, I narrowed my eyes at a familiar car.

"Did you know they were coming Liss?"

"Who?" Mia asked from the front seat.

"Them..." I said as I pointed to Adrian's car. Christian, Andre, Nat and Adrian all climbed out of his car just as the girls turned to look.

"No, Christian said nothing to me."

Great! Now I'm going to have to deal with them here too. I knew that Adrian would take my ease with Dimitri the wrong way.

"What are you guys doing here?" Liss asked when we got out of the car. She immediately went to Christian where they unabashedly made out...

"Ugh! Do you mind..." Andre said, "...that's my sister!"

"Nope, can't say I do..." Christian said, his lips still somehow attached to Lissa's.

"We wanted to see what's so _special_ about this place." Adrian said looking directly at me.

"What do you mean?" Mia asked.

"Well, the _Rose_ before she came here is a very different Rose to the one who came home this morning, so we wanted to see what was so special about this place to cause such an amazing difference."

_The difference wasn't a 'what', it's a who..._

"I'll meet you inside Liss." I said as I passed her before walking off on my own. She was still a little busy, so I don't know if she heard me or not.

I smiled as I saw Sydney in our usual spot at the back of the studio.

"Hey Rose, are you here on your own tonight?" she asked.

"No, Liss and Mia are outside with her boyfriend and brother and a couple of other friends. They wanted to come see what we do here."

"Are they going to join up?"

"Oh God I hope not." I grumbled. Just then the door to the studio opened and in waltzed Liss, Christian and Mia followed by the three pains in my ass, well two really, Andre was alright.

"Ah, I see. Don't worry, we'll run interference for you."

I smiled at her. "Thanks Sydney."

"So, who's who?" Sydney whispered as they got closer.

"Well obviously the one Liss is wrapped around is Christian, her boyfriend, the one behind her is her brother Andre; he's pretty cool. The one beside him is Adrian; he's the biggest player around but otherwise harmless. Then there's the other one... that's Natoli, or as I like to call him, _Nat_! Just like the bug..." Sydney started to laugh beside me. "Watch that one; he's always been a little underhanded."

"Got it." She said smiling.

The girls introduced Sydney to the guys and as I expected, they were like moths to a flame... Glad that they seemed occupied, I made sure that I was as far away from them as I could get. A minute later, my own personal trainer God walked into the room and glanced around; his eyebrows lifted as his gaze landed on the new recruits to my right.

"Alright ladies..." he said with a slight smirk. I noticed he didn't add on 'gentlemen' in his greeting... "Form the circle and we'll start on our stretches. I hope everyone practiced their balance exercises over the week; we'll be doing a few of those before getting into the more physical stuff."

_Physical stuff hey...? _It only took five minutes to go through the stretches, and then he led us into a couple of the easy yoga poses.

"Okay ladies, tree pose." He said. I looked to my right and smiled as I saw the boys glare at Dimitri, he still hadn't acknowledged that they were here... I loved it! I balanced on my right leg and grimaced a little as I lifted my left foot up and placed it above my right knee, then I lifted my arms up and over my head. I looked back to see Dimitri walking straight over to me. "Breathe in deep everyone."

He walked in between Mia and I and came up behind me. He placed one hand on my right arm between my elbow and shoulder, and then the other on my left knee that was sticking out to the side. "Bring your foot higher Rose, I know you can." I took a deep breath and leaned slightly to the right as I brought my foot up higher. "Watch your arms." He was so distracting...

"They wouldn't come down if you weren't distracting me."

"That's the whole idea Rose..." he whispered close to my ear. "You need to keep your concentration, no matter what's going on around you."

I may have let out a little growl of... frustration. _Yeah... frustration – that's what it was._

"Care to come demonstrate another pose with me Rose?"

"Okaaaay..." I said almost reluctantly. With Dimitri one could never be sure... "But I'm still sore, so be nice."

"I'll only ever do to you what I know you can handle Rose."

_Time may have stopped just then... What did he mean by that?_

I came out of the pose as he took his hands away from me.

"Alright everyone." He said as we walked into the middle of the room. "Rose has been doing some private training and she's a little on the sore side tonight, so I thought I'd show you all an exercise that you can do at home with either a friend or partner to help stretch out sore muscles. This next pose is called a Triangle Yoga Pose, so everyone grab a partner."

He stood behind me and placed his hands on my hips. It only took a few seconds for everyone to pair up, Lissa and Christian of course, Adrian and Mia, Andre and Sydney... I nearly burst out laughing when the woman beside Nat turned to him and asked if he'd be her partner; she was in her fifties and a little on the plump side and the look on Nat's face showed he was a less than enthusiastic partner.

"Now the people in front stand straight and spread you legs about three feet apart." I did... "Those at the rear; put your left foot in the space between your partner's feet. Good... Now, those in front turn your right foot to the outside; make sure your heels are in alignment... Bending down..." he said as he took my right arm in his hand and gently guided me down sideways, "...either place your hand on the inside of your ankle or hold it. Extend your left hand up towards the ceiling." Goosebumps prickled at my skin as he ran his hand up my arm.

After he did this, he leant forward and placed his bent left arm over my exposed waist, securing me tightly against his body and grabbed my skyward left arm once again at the wrist and held it firmly. "You will naturally turn your heads upwards but don't completely turn to look at the ceiling as this can put too much strain on your neck muscles."

I was hurting in so many places, but for the life of me I couldn't think of one damned reason to move...

"This position stretches not only your obliques," He dragged his fingers down my side in demonstration and I think my eyes rolled back in my head, I'm sure he felt it. "...but also you hamstrings and arms. Can you feel it Rose?" _Huh? _

"Yeah..." I whispered in a flustered voice. I saw a grin start to pull at his mouth but he quickly wiped it away.

"Now, slowly come back up and do the other side..." _Oh good Lord... _

He helped me stand back up and then I felt him lean in closer to me. Mini me was now spread out on the floor of my subconscious mind in a dead faint, while my flesh prickled at his proximity.

"The answer is yes." he whispered in my ear before shifting me so that I could bend to the left. I was confused; I had no idea what the question was... He saw my confusion and thankfully put me out of my misery..."I do see something I like."

_Oh! There is a God... _Mini me was now wide awake and reclining on a chaise lounge in a sexy pose while wiggling her eyebrows over a glass of Champers..._._

After our _demonstration_, Dimitri told everyone to change positions and do it again. I dazedly made my way back to where I was standing, but I didn't miss the look that Adrian was giving to Dimitri. I stood back to watch everyone else as Dimitri moved around helping the others correct the pose. After all, I needed some time to collect myself...

As promised, Dimitri put us through some basic fighting moves. He only came near me three more times; twice only fleetingly and by the time the class finished, my head was spinning. I liked what I was feeling in a lot of ways, but I also knew what these feelings would cost once I went to sleep– a rough night. I would dream tonight...violently.

I walked behind all of my friends at the end of class as we made our way to the door of the studio and was surprised when Dimitri walked over to us.

"I hope you all had a good night?" Dimitri asked.

"Yes, it was great as usual, thanks Dimitri." Mia said eagerly.

"You're very welcome Mia. How did you guys like it?" he asked the boys.

"It was good, I learnt a lot actually." Adrian said tightly. From where I was standing, I couldn't see his face full on, but what I _did_ see looked a little challenging.

"Well, that's good to hear." Dimitri said ignoring Adrian's tone. "Will you be joining us regularly?"

"Nah..." Nat interrupted. "...Adrian just wanted to scope out the competition, didn't ya man?" Now, the look he gave Nat... _that_ I could see...

"Can it." Adrian growled. _Competition? For who? _"He may not come back but I think I might."

Dimitri held his gaze and nodded before looking back at me. "Do you mind if I speak to you for a minute Rose?"

"No, not at all. Ah, I'll meet you all outside in a minute okay." I said mainly to Liss and Mia, but the others knew I meant them too. With a nod and a smile, Liss dragged Christian out and Mia grabbed Adrian and soon I was alone with Dimitri. "Good class tonight, I had fun."

"Good." He said smiling. "I hope I didn't make you uncomfortable with that stretching pose."

"Uncomfortable? No, definitely _not_ uncomfortable." _I have a more appropriate word for how you made me feel..._

"That's good. So... I'll see you at six?"

"With bells on." I said smiling.

"Don't forget your stretches tonight, and the massage..." he reminded me. His face was soft and a slight smirk pulled at his mouth, so I decided to play with him.

"You just can't stop thinking about me in the shower all lathered up, can you?" I asked while trying not to laugh. His face didn't change as his eyes dropped to my mouth. _Oops! _"Sorry, sometimes my mouth has a mind of its own. I'll just..." I said pointing my thumb to the door. I stopped speaking before I said anything else... "See ya."

I was thankful for the cooler night tonight, the air help cool my overheated face; even my ears felt on fire.

"Are you blushing Rose?" Mia chided as joined them.

"No, can we go?" I said quickly. Fifteen minutes later we pulled up outside Mia's house. It had been ages since I'd been here and I felt terrible for not spending more time with my friend.

"Are we doing anything this weekend?" she asked.

"We could go shopping or maybe catch a movie?" Liss suggested. "What do you say Rose?"

"A movie sounds good, as long as it's up the back."

"Excellent!" Squealed Mia. "What will we see?"

"Well, there is a movie I've been dying to see."

"Okay, we can go buy the tickets after I get back from training in the morning."

"Sounds like a plan. Well, I need a shower, see ya chick-a-dee's." Mia said as she jumped out of the car. We yelled our goodbyes as she ran up to the house and after we saw her go in, Liss backed out of the driveway and turned towards home.

As we walked into the foyer, Mrs D smiled at us in greeting. "Where is everyone?" Liss asked.

"Oh, your father and Viktor had to go into town on some sort of business and Natoli is in his room I think. Do you girls want something to eat?"

"No thanks Mrs D, we ate beforehand. I need a shower; I'll see you in the morning Mrs D.?"

"No worries Rose, good night... sweet dreams." _We can only hope..._

=x=

Saturday morning my eyes opened suddenly with the image of Mason's now constant red eyes boring into me. He was never the kind, loving Mason in my dreams anymore; he was always cold and soulless. I always felt so drained when I awoke from these bad nightmares. It was like _this _Mason was sucking the life out of me and I felt powerless to stop him.

I sat up and rubbed the sleep and dried tears from my eyes and face and then dragged myself out of bed. I was still sore but not as bad as yesterday, so at least I had something to smile about I suppose. I quickly got dressed in my bike shorts and sports bra, grabbed my favourite baggy T and runners before leaving my room. I would put my shoes on outside, giving me a chance to wake up properly in the sunshine.

I opened my door to leave but as I looked up, I saw that the door to Mr D's office across the hall was slightly open and a soft light on inside. I knew he wouldn't be in there at this time of the morning. _Who could be in there? _

I quietly crept closer to the study and I was surprised to hear Nat's voice from inside. He'd been tense around the house lately and I really wanted to know why... I got as close to the door as I could so that I could hear...

"So, I'm gathering that you know what's going on here?" Nat said slightly bitter. I hated how I'd become such a snoop, but I had a bad feeling about Viktor and Nat and I knew I wouldn't find anything out by coming out of the shadows.

"Oh, that was nice of him..." He said sarcastically.

"Really... well, I'm glad someone does." _Man, I hate one sided conversations..._

"Yes, I told him I would and I will... Well, I don't really have much choice do I?" _Much choice about what? Could he be talking about that thing at work..?_

"Yeah right..." It was quiet while he was obviously listening to whoever was on the other end of the line, there was a few "mmm's" and "yeah's" but he didn't say much for a while.

"You're the only one who knows my feelings for her..." _Feelings for who? Oh this is interesting..._ _What I wouldn't give to know who he was speaking to..._

"No...

"You know that's never going to be an option...

"Because he'll never allow it, _that's_ why!" His voice was starting to get louder; he was upset, a little angry but more upset.

"I've got to go, I'll talk to you in a couple of days... yeah, you too... bye." _Oh shit! _

_THAT was weird..._ I thought to myself as I sneakingly ran back to my bedroom door and slipped inside as quietly as I could. My heart was thumping like crazy in my chest. A few seconds later I heard a door outside softly close. I knew if I didn't get downstairs soon, Dimitri would call the house phone. When he'd said that, he said it like he was joking, but then he did tell me that he never said _anything_ that he didn't mean. I took a breath and acted as if I hadn't heard a thing, so I opened the door and walked out into the hall.

I moaned as I stood looking at the stairs of pain and started to make my way down... slowly! I hissed with each step and when I was about half way down, I heard Nat's voice behind me.

"Do you want a hint Rose?" I stiffened and turned to look up into his smirking face.

"Morning Nat. A hint about what?"

"To make it easier to go down the steps when your legs are so sore."

"Yeah sure..." At this point, I'd take a hint from anyone, even Nat.

"Turn around and go down backwards." I narrowed my eyes at him wondering if it could be that easy. I quickly decided to give it a try.

I smiled as I found that it actually didn't kill my legs... "I can't believe this is all I had to do. You could have told me this yesterday you know."

"Now where would the fun have been in that?"

"Mongrel..." I grumbled as I made my way down to the bottom step.

"Have a good morning Rose." He said with a smile, with that, he turned around and went in the direction of his room. Just then the house phone started to ring...

_He wouldn't! _I quickly made my way to the phone before it woke anyone up and lifted the receiver to my ear.

"Hello?"

"You're late." I smiled and shook my head.

"No, you're just impatient. If you'd waited another ten seconds, you would have seen me walk through the door." I said whispering.

"You're already fifteen minutes late, another ten seconds wouldn't be in your best interest, now get your butt outside."

"Alright, alright... I'm coming; don't get your knickers in a knot."

"I don't wear knickers..." he said, and then the line went dead! I couldn't help but snicker... I'd have to find out more about this... I hung up the phone and grabbed my house keys out of the bowl on the little table by the door. When I walked outside, I was confused.

I looked around as I softly shut the door behind me and then walked out to the driveway... _Where is he? _

"Dimitri?" I called out softly.

"Time to run Rose..." I heard his voice from behind me. I quickly turned but couldn't see him. "This is your punishment for keeping me waiting... RUN..." _Oh shit..._

I took off. No warm up, no nothing... My sore legs let their objections to what I was doing to them be heard loud and clear, but I knew I'd be in trouble if I slowed down. I'd gone past about four or five houses before I looked back over my shoulder and saw his smiling face looking back at me as he ran behind me. Then he lowered his chin slightly and raised his eyebrow... I nearly tripped. But then I saw that he'd increased his speed.

_Crap!_ I tried to pick up my speed but couldn't, and I had no chance of outrunning Mr Spider Legs anyway so I don't know why I was even bothering. I heard him getting closer and closer and my legs screamed at me the whole time. The moment I started giggling was my downfall. I never could laugh and run at the same time. Seconds later his arms wrapped around my waist and he lifted me off my feet.

"AHH!" I screamed as I laughed. "Put me down..."

"You didn't get far Roza." He said laughing.

I looked up at him as he put me down on my feet. "Roza?" I asked...

He looked away and scratched nervously at the back of his neck. "It's your name in Russian." He explained simply.

"Roza... I like it." _Especially when you say it._ "That wasn't nice you know." I said changing subjects.

"What?"

"Hiding from me and then chasing me, I hadn't even done my stretches."

"You don't always get to stretch before needing to run Rose." I hated it when he started channelling Confucius.

"Yeah well... oh, by the way, you didn't finish what you were saying before."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. What did you mean by it?"

"Mean by what?" I also hated when he hedged my questions.

"ARGH! Stop answering my questions with questions... You're so frustrating!" I shook my head as I saw him struggle not to smile. "Pulling information out of you is like pulling teeth... You know exactly what I mean. Are you telling me you don't wear knickers?"

He tried... but he couldn't stop the giggle. "Why all the interest in my underwear?" _Oh... should I answer?_

"Hey, you're the one who brought them up."

"No... actually, that was you." Obviously he wasn't going to tell me. "Are you going to tell me why you were late?"

"A few reasons really, mainly a bad night." I could see he was about to ask me about it, so I cut him off. "Is this all we're doing?"

"No, of course not. Come on." One thing about Dimitri; he knew when to push and when to back off. We started off at a slow jog which soon sped up as I tried to keep pace with Daddy Long Legs beside me... "What have you got planned this weekend?" He asked me as we ran.

"Liss and Mia want to go to the movies tonight... We're going to buy the tickets when I get back." I said as I panted.

"What are you seeing?"

"I have no idea. Liss has something in mind... something she's _dying_ to see apparently." I looked at him and was confused by his expression. "Would you like to come with us?" _Crap! _My mother was right; my mouth _is _going to get me into trouble – maybe... _Did he just stop a smile...?_

"I'd love to." _Argh... _I snickered at the image in my head of Mini Me all dolled up for a night out... with the God who walks... _Oh crap... what am I going to wear? _

"Cool." _Cool? Argh... such an intelligent reply Rose..._

The rest of training went well; I actually think I'm getting the hang of all this exercise. I even got to do some punching and stuff at the Y...

"I'll ring you when I know what session we're seeing, okay?" I said as he pulled into the driveway.

"Okay, I'll see you tonight."

"That you will. See ya." I said smiling. I got out of the car and walked up to the front door. When I turned back, Dimitri was half standing out of his car.

"I forgot to tell you that I'll be starting work on Monday."

"Does that mean our morning trainings will be off?"

"Not sure yet, I'll know more by the afternoon. I'll talk to you about it at training on Monday night."

"Okay, so... Monday morning?" I was afraid he was going to cancel. _Geez, when did I start looking forward to exercise? Oh yeah..._

"If we start at 5:30..." My eyebrows rose as much as my jaw dropped... He really _is_ trying to kill me.

He laughed... "How much do you want to train?"

"Is that a trick question?" He didn't answer, he just raised his eyebrows. "I'll get back to you..." He just shook his head and got back into his car and I watched him drive away.

=x=

I stood at the back of the cinema foyer as Liss waited in line to buy the tickets. I'd told her that Dimitri was coming with us so she took that as a go ahead to invite Christian too. When Mia heard, she whined about being a fifth wheel until we told her to invite Eddie. As much as being around guys still unnerved me, I knew both of these guys well and having Dimitri there would be a big help. Maybe this is just what I need...

"Okay... six tickets." Liss said while fanning her smiling face with them.

"What are we seeing?" I said holding my hand out. I let out a groan as I read what movie we were seeing. "You've got to be joking?" _Dimitri's going kill himself laughing..._

"What? You know how much I've wanted to see this movie. Too late now, brown cow... I've already bought the tickets, so suck it up!" Then she started laughing... "Suck it up, get it!"

"Don't try to make jokes Liss. I can't believe we're seeing Eclipse." _Freakin' vampires. _"What's with this vampire obsession of yours?"

"They're so mysterious... and _danger_ous. You must admit, the whole 'falling in love with a vampire' thing is like the forbidden fruit..."

"Your idea of romance is seriously warped my friend, you realise this don't you?" All she could do was laugh.

"I've come... to suck... your blood!" she sing-songed in a terrible rendition of Dracula as she made out that she was going to bite my neck. I squealed and we both laughed as we ran outside and got into her car. Today might have had a bad start, but it most certainly did improve as it went on. I couldn't help but wonder if today was the light at the end of a very long and dark tunnel.


	16. Chapter 13 Dates and Lines Drawn

**A/N:**

Hi everyone, I hope everyone around the world is healthy and happy. Tonight, as I upload this chapter, I send out my best wishes for those in the north of my beautiful state of Queensland. Tonight the largest cyclone in Australias recorded history is about to cross land in between Cairns and Townsville. For those in the US, Queensland is the 2nd largest state in Australia. In regards to size... Qld, is just over 1,730,00 sq klms/ 669 423 sq miles. I just had a look on Wikipedia and the largest state in the US is Alaska and that is 1,400,000 sq klms/ 540 543sq miles. If it was a country in and of itself, it would be number 18 on the list of 239 countries of the world in regards of size. The whole of the Uk could fit just under 8 times in this one state.

In the last five weeks or so, some parts of Queensland have been flooded up to 3 seperate times. Only a few weeks ago, 75% of Qld was under water including our state capital city.

Tonight north Queensland is being hammered by a category 5 cyclone, almost the same size and wind speed as hurricane Katrina... Please keep everyone in your prayers that everyone is safe tonight.

On another note, here is the next installment, sorry to keep some of you hanging... :) Thank you all so, so much for your wonderful reviews, you have all been so amazing.  
Thanks

Sandy

* * *

**13 Dates and Lines Drawn**

"I told you buying this dress was a good idea Rose." Liss said as she walked out of my closet with _the _little black dress in her hands. As much as I didn't want to admit it, I couldn't wait to see Dimitri's face when he saw me in this. Mini me was digging around in her underwear drawer and smiled triumphantly as she held up a little scrap of black lace; otherwise known as panties and in her other hand, the sexiest strapless bra I owned. I bought them in a weak moment...

I smiled and went over to my real drawers and pulled out the exact set!

"Oh, I like the way you think." Liss crooned. "Although, in this dress, I think it would probably be better to not risk panty lines." _Huh?_

"And how do you propose I not show any panty lines Liss?"

"Easy, don't wear any." She giggled at my open mouth and bulging eyes.

"I'm not going commando..." My previous comment to Dimitri about him going commando on my ass flashed through my memory and I couldn't stop the snicker that escaped.

"What was that?" Liss asked.

"Nothing, just something I said to Dimitri. But, I can't _not _wear any underwear Liss, this dress is risqué enough." I said resolutely as I walked into my bathroom; clothes in hand. I quickly changed into my little lace numbers and then came back into the room where Liss had my dress. I slipped it on and Liss pulled up the invisible zip at the back.

"Rose..." Liss whined as she grabbed at the strap of my thong just above my right butt cheek. "I told you..."

I walked over to the mirror in the corner of my room and turned around, and sure enough... Panty line. What do I do? Leave them on so everyone can see I'm wearing a G-string or take them off leaving everyone wondering how I'm _not _showing panty lines? A grin spread across my face as I thought of the exact person I should ask... But is it asking for trouble?

I walked over to my bedside table and picked up my cell phone.

"Who are you calling?" Liss asked.

"Adrian." I said smiling. "And I'm texting..."

**To: **Adrian Ivashkov  
**From: **Rose Hathaway  
**Subject: **I need you opinion.  
**Date: **Saturday 10th July, 2010. 5:12pm

I'm being dragged out against my will.  
When wearing a tight dress, what's better?  
Panty line or no panty line?

I couldn't help but laugh as I pressed send.

"I can't believe you asked him that." Liss said laughing over my shoulder. No less than ten seconds later my cell beeped... "That was quick..."

**To:** Rose Hathaway  
**From:** Adrian Ivashkov  
**Subject:** My opinion  
**Date:** Saturday 10th July, 2010. 5:12pm

:-D None! Its torture not knowing if ur just that  
good at hiding it or if the prize is already half  
unwrapped. Then again, I may need a preview just 2 B sure!

Of course he'd have to put it like that!

"Told ya." She said smugly after reading his reply. "If Christian sees that I'm not showing any panty line, he can't stop from rubbing his hand over my..."

"ARGH! LA LA LA LA LA..." I yelled out loudly with my hands over my ears. "I don't want to know!"

I had enough bad images in my head courtesy of Christian to last me for the rest of my life; I didn't need images of roving hands too... Urgh!

"So... To be or not to be?" she asked wiggling her eyebrows. When she saw my confused expression, she rolled her eyes and continued. "Commando Rose..." Images of my nightmare flashed in my mind, I knew I'd pay for it tonight if I took that step, but at the same time I wanted to be the daring girl I was before all this mess. And that daring girl would go commando.

With my mind made up, I bent forward slightly and reached up under my dress and grabbed the little scrap of lace that was my G-string and pulled them off.

"That a girl!" Liss said laughing as she pulled me in for a congratulatory hug. "Now, come help me decide what to wear."

Just over an hour later, we heard the chime of the front door ring... Dimitri and was here. Despite the nearly overwhelming urge to put my panties back on, I slowly made my way backwards down the stairs to open the door.

"Wow." Dimitri said softly when I opened the door. "You look... stunning."

"Thank you." That's all I could get out... My mind was a blank while my eyes danced over the vision in front of me. Scruffy, tattered denim jeans with holes over his knees, white button-up shirt and a long brown leather duster jacket... my fantasy was now complete... All he was missing was the ten gallon hat! _Mmm... maybe I should have left the panties on..._

"Oh, come on you two... Everyone's waiting at Mia's." Liss said as she pushed us out the door. "By Ma!" she yelled over her shoulder. "You look... different Dimitri."

"Good different or bad different?" he asked while still looking at me.

"Definitely good..." I said before I could stop myself. "I like this..." I said as I tugged on his jacket. _If he only knew how much..._

"Me too." He said as he opened my door. "It's big enough for two." He added just before closing it.

"You're so bad." I heard Liss mumble to him from outside the car.

=x=

Our two cars soon pulled up outside our local diner, Dimitri and I in his car, the other two couples in Christian's car. We knew that in coming here, we could order, eat and leave in a short amount of time so that we wouldn't miss the movie...

_What a shame that would be... _I thought to myself wryly.

"Rose, it's good to see you again." Celeste greeted as I came in with the girls, but when she looked behind us and saw Dimitri, her eyes almost bugged out of her head.

"Hi Celeste, how have you been?"

"Busy actually, so that's good. Table for...?"

"Six thanks." Liss answered.

Celeste tilted her head to the side as she looked at me and a small smile played at her lips before giving a quick nod and led us to a large family booth in the back corner. As we got there, Dimitri slipped his arm around my shoulder.

"How about you sit on the end, it won't make you feel so closed in." _Wow, he is too good to be true._

"Good thinking, thanks."

Everyone climbed in and I sat on the end beside Liss. Dimitri was on the other end opposite me, so I had a good view... After less than ten minutes, I could feel myself almost completely relax; even with the guys only feet away from me. Conversation was easy and the food went down well, it was the most fun I'd had in a long time... I actually felt, dare I say it... normal again.

"So Dimitri..." Christian started. "Are you ready to call it a day with Rose's training yet?"

"No, not at all. In fact, Rose is improving in leaps and bounds."

"Yeah, she can actually walk down the stairs now, even if it is backwards." Lissa said laughing.

"Oh, funny Liss..." I said sarcastically.

"What happened Rose?" Eddie asked with a nod to my hands; they weren't bandaged anymore but they still showed the damage I did to them. I was about to answer when Liss spoke up.

"Oh, she had words with a tree... The tree won."

Crickets – that's all that could be heard at our table for about five seconds as everyone stared at her. Then everyone broke out laughing.

"Well it did..." She said. That comment made us laugh even more. As our laughter died down we finished off the last of our dinner.

"I'll go settle the bill; do you want to come with me Rose?" Dimitri asked.

With a rough shove from the blonde princess beside me, I answered. "I guess I am..." One more shove and I was no longer sitting down. "Pushy bitch..." I grumbled to my best friend.

"You know it!" She called as Dimitri and I made our way to the counter.

As I got to the counter, I looked behind me and noticed where Dimitri's eyes were directing... and it wasn't on my face... Mini me did the fist pump that I so desperately wanted to do myself.

=x=

"So, what are we seeing?" Dimitri asked as we all walked into the foyer of the cinema. I almost didn't hear him as my eyes took in the large number of people milling around. "Rose...?"

"Huh? Oh, um... Eclipse." My eyes were scanning the crowd, but I wasn't sure if I was looking for anyone in particular or not.

"Of course, vampires again. Is there something I should know Rose?" He said standing a little closer to me, bringing my attention to him and away from the crowd. _Man he smelt good tonight._

"No, Liss picked the movie remember, and plus _she's _the one with the whole 'blood sucking' fantasy."

"Of course." He said grinning. I rolled my eyes at his expression and shook my head. "How about we go get some popcorn?"

"Sure." As we walked closer to the line of people, Dimitri's hand slipped around my waist and pulled me closer to his side. At one point, it slipped a little further down, right where my panties would normally sit... _He was checking my 'commando' status!_

"Oh, good idea guys." Liss said as we made our way back to the group. She tilted her head and pouted at Christian, who crumbled within seconds. He rolled his eyes and dragged Eddie over to grab something from the snack bar. She was good... I'd have to learn how to do that.

Soon we were settled into our seats, Dimitri on my right, Liss on my left, then Christian, Mia & Eddie beside her; I couldn't help but feel a little anxious for some reason.

"Are you alright Roza?" Dimitri asked me quietly. _Roza... I loved it when he called me that._

"Yeah." I tried to smile but even to me it felt forced.

Before the lights went down, a group of guys filed into the row in front of us; I instantly felt myself tensing up, along with my heart rate. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath hoping to calm myself down, but it didn't do much. My eyes flung open when I felt weight across the back of my neck and my body being pulled closer to the man beside me.

"It's alright; no-one will hurt you." He whispered in my ear. I felt my body start to relax as I leant against him. I offered him a smile in thanks and my breath caught in my throat with the look in his eyes.

Up until a few weeks ago, I used to secretly drool over Edward Cullen... as far as fantasy creatures go, he wasn't too bad. I'd never admit that to Liss or Mia, but now... leaning up against this wall of muscle and having his mouth watering scent flood my senses, it was a case of Edward who?

A couple of hours later we walked out of the cinema in fairly good spirits. The red eyes of the bad vamps hit a little close to home, thank God none of the actors looked like my own personal red eyed spectre. Liss and Mia were in La-La land beside us while their respective halves walked behind them rolling their eyes. I was still on cloud 'Eau du Dimitri'; I think his scent will take days to leave my skin...

But I don't know what I was thinking when I thought that I could have a 'normal' day... As we walked back into the foyer of the cinemas my eyes once again scanned the crowd.

Only this time they found familiar faces... My world stopped. My ears rang, my feet became rooted to the floor and I felt the blood rush from my head.

"What's...?" Dimitri didn't get anything else out before Christian answered him.

"Oh shit... Jesse and his goons are here."

Dimitri's eyes darted between Christian, me and Jesse and then he realised that it was _that_ Jesse. As stony as I'd become in the last few seconds, I felt Dimitri tense and his arm once again came around me, pulling me into his side.

"Oh look who it is..." Jesse sneered.

"Don't listen to him Rose." Liss said beside me, "He's just trying to stir you up."

"What'd ya see Rose? Debbie does Dallas?" The pricks behind him laughed like hyenas. Dimitri glared as he tried to manoeuvre me to his other side, but Jesse wasn't finished and kept up his tirade as we went towards the door. "I see you've moved on to _bigger_ prey, though I didn't think they got much bigger than Ginger Megs."

Then everything exploded...

"YOU PRICK!" Eddie yelled as he vaulted at them.

"NO!" Christian screamed as he reached out to grab Eddie around the waist. Dimitri grabbed me and pushed me towards Liss and Mia and told them to 'watch me' as he went to help Christian... _Watch me?_

"Come on... I'll take you on." Jesse said puffing out his chest, holding his hands up and flicking his fingers at Eddie; taunting him on.

In a voice that sent chills up my spine, Dimitri spoke. "I think you've done enough damage. I suggest you move away as fast as you can before you get hurt."

Jesse huffed indignantly at him. I saw Dimitri's jaw clench before he spoke again.

"If you really need a demonstration; I'll be happy to comply but if I punish you, it _will_ hurt – a lot. Do you understand?"

Even thought he tried to keep up the facade of confidence, I saw a flash of fear cross Jesse's features, then more bodies added themselves into the fray... Adrian, Andre and Nat...

"What the hell?" I exclaimed.

"Andre?" Liss said in surprise.

Jesse, Ralf and Aaron looked between everyone in our group, especially Dimitri but they couldn't help goading Eddie on a little more as Christian and Andre tried to pull him out of the cinema. Dimitri was walking back to where us girls stood.

"Let _go_ of me... They _killed_ him." Eddie yelled at the guys holding him.

"If you attack him, then you'll be spending time in a cell with him, is that what you want?" Adrian said.

"That's _exactly_ what I want. You're mine _fucker_!" Eddie yelled at Jesse.

By now Eddie, Adrian and Christian were walking out through the doors and I was a mess. Security finally turned up.

"What's going on here?" The big blonde mountain asked.

"This group here," Dimitri said pointing to Jesse and his friends, "... were antagonising friends of mine who currently have a case against them."

The security officer turned to look at the smug faces of my nightmares and motioned for his team members to move them away. Turning back to me and seeing the state I was in, he asked me if I'd like to make a complaint.

"No, I just want to leave." I said in Lissa and Mia's arms. My friends took me outside to where the guys were cooling Eddie down. "Go see how he is Mia." I said.

"Are you sure Rose?" She asked.

I nodded before she went over to her boyfriend and I could see just how much her presence helped him. I looked around and noticed that Dimitri wasn't with us.

"Where's Dimitri?" I asked Liss. We moved back to the door to see Dimitri talking to the security guy as he wrote in a notebook.

"He's probably giving him some details."

Less than a minute later one of the other security guys came over to where Dimitri stood and told his boss something. Then Dimitri shook hands with the head guy and started to walk towards me. The closer to the door he got, the closer to tears I became once again. He saw of course... As the door closed softly behind him, he opened his arms.

I stepped forward into his arms.

"Shh, it's over now." He murmured close to my ear as I hiccupped. I felt so safe cocooned within his embrace. "Come on Roza, let's get out of here."

As he turned me around and walked me towards my friends, I saw that none of them knew what to say.

"I'm sorry I lost it in there Rose, I didn't mean to make things worse." Eddie apologised.

"You didn't Eddie. If I could have, I would have done the exact same thing."

"You'll get there Rose, I know you will." Adrian said confidently.

"Why are they even here? Shouldn't they be in jail or something?" Mia asked tersely.

"They're out on bail." Dimitri explained, apparently that's what the other guy told them after dealing with Jesse and the others.

Dimitri and I walked over to his car while Liss, Mia and Eddie all got back into Christian's car. Adrian said that he, Andre and Nat would meet us back at the house seeing as their night was now over too. I told them they didn't have to do that, but they said that if they walked back in there, they'd have to finish what Eddie started, so they walked off to somewhere else in the car park.

Every now and then Dimitri would glance over to me in the passenger seat and then halfway home he reached across the centre console of the car with his hand. I gave a small smile as I placed my hand in his and felt that now familiar tingle.

We drove in behind Christian and got out to follow them into the house.

"Okay, I think we need to all sit and chill while watching another movie." Liss said as we all walked into the house.

"Isn't it a bit late Liss? And what about your parents?" I asked.

Liss gave me a look like I had two heads. "No it's not too late and mom and dad are out for the night; some sort of party. They're not sure if they'll be home late tonight or tomorrow, depends on how late the party goes for. Hey, why don't you guys go and make the popcorn." She said to Christian and Eddie. Eddie seemed to have perked up a little bit on the trip home so he and Christian disappeared into the kitchen.

Only a couple of minutes later I heard the front door open and the voices of the other guys floated into the games room where we were sitting in front of the big screen TV.

"Another movie?" Andre asked as he plopped down.

"Apparently..." Mia scoffed.

"Excellent." Adrian yelled. "At least we get to watch a bloody movie tonight after all... What are we watching anyway?"

"Daybreakers!" Liss said happily as she held up a DVD case encased in a plastic sleave that held pretend blood.

"Liss, no..." I whined. "No more bloody vampires..."

"Oh how very apt Rose..." Nat said sarcastically from the beanbag. Then I realised what I'd said... causing me to roll my eyes at him.

"Oh come on Rose, I only just bought this."

"Don't you have anything else?" I asked hopefully.

"Fine... The only other new ones I have are Wolfman..."

I just stared at her...

"Legion..." she held up. Mia started giggling... _Vampires, Werewolves, Angels... I can see a pattern forming here... _

"Avatar... or Dear John." She said finishing off.

"Oh, Dear John..." Mia yelled as she held her hand up.

"You just want to perv." Adrian said snickering. Liss looked at me and held up an eyebrow in question, I just shrugged my shoulder in reply.

"Dear John it is then." Liss declared. Christian and Eddie walked in as she put the DVD in the player and then passed around five bags of microwave popcorn.

"Your skills in the kitchen continue to amaze me Hot Stuff." I said as Mia passed me a bag to share with Dimitri.

"That's Gordon Ramsay to you Rosebud." He said grinning, to which I replied with poking my tongue at him. He knew how much I hated that nickname and he'd use it whenever he could. I looked to see Dimitri softly laughing beside me, taking in our friendly banter. The opening scenes started and I couldn't help but wish he'd hold me like he did in the cinema.

We'd been watching for some time and as I watched John tip his box of love letters into the fire on the screen, my eyelids started to fall...

"_You're forgetting Rose." I opened my eyes and saw that I was lying on my bed in my parents' house; Mason was standing at the foot of my bed. I couldn't really make out his facial features, they were all fuzzy, but somehow I knew it was him._

"_Forgetting what Mase?"_

"_Me."_

"_No... I'd never forget you, never."_

_He took a few steps back and my eyelids once again felt heavy. I just needed to sleep... As my eyes closed, I felt pressure on my wrists. My eyes whipped open and I found myself looking into the cold, alcohol fuelled eyes of Jesse._

"_Let go of me." I screamed. All I could hear was the cackling of the two either side of me, their grip on me was strong and no matter what I did, I couldn't get away from them. As I fought, I saw Mason walk around to my side. "Mason... help me..." I cried. I could feel hands on me but my eyes locked with Mason's. His hand reached towards me, but there was nothing I could do to reach him, he wasn't even trying to get the guys away from me._

"_ARGH! Mason, help!"_

"Rose..."

"Mason, help me... _No_..." I screamed. Finally my arm came free and I hit out. "Leave me alone... Get _off_ me!"

"Rose... Roza." That's not Mason... I knew it wasn't him, but I couldn't stop fighting, I had to get away from them.

"Mason..." I reached out. My escape was hindered once again by my wrists being held firmly.

"Roza, open your eyes." _Dimitri? _I opened my eyes to see his face on inches from my own, I tried to reach up to him but I was being held down. I quickly looked to my sides to see that he held them firmly in his grip. "Do you see me?" My head nodded frantically as hot tears fell down my cheeks.

His weight came away from my arms and then his hands came to either side of my face. "You're alright now. It was just a bad dream, okay?"

"I remember..." I whispered. I could hear soft sniffles beside me. "I remember..."

"Shh..." He said as he pulled me into his arms.

"Take her upstairs." Liss said. I could hear how upset she was but I had too many images still playing in my head to say anything else, all I could do was close my eyes and say that I could now remember. I felt the footfalls as Dimitri walked across the wide foyer with me in his arms. Then from painful experience, I knew that it would take seventeen steps to get to the next floor and soon he had my bedroom door open.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked me before he placed me onto my bed. I did, but I... I needed him closer. I moved myself further over to the other side and looked up at him. He tilted his head and I saw his jaw clench... "I don't know Rose."

"I just..." I leant forward and dropped my head into my hands. I looked up as I felt the bed dip down.

"Come here." He said as he leant his back against the headboard and opened his arms to me. I scooted over to him, laid my head against his chest and then proceeded to describe what happened in my dream.

"I'm sick of this Dimitri, I'm sick of feeling so weak. I'm sick of crumbling, I'm _sick_ of scanning crowds for danger, I'm _sick_ of not being able to go anywhere near my guy friends without feeling like I'm going to puke. I want my _life_ back." My voice got steadily louder and louder as I spoke.

"You will Rose, you will. I know what it feels like... to feel like the walls are closing in on you, scanning for danger... I know." I could hear in his voice that he wasn't lying and I wondered what could have possibly happened in his life for him to feel like this. "Our training and you talking with your therapist is going to get your life back, I promise this Roza."

"I don't want to be _this _sort of girl Dimitri. I _hate_ feeling weak, I've never felt like this before and I _hate_ it." The more the images of my nightmare flickered in my head and my words reverberated in my ears; the angrier I got. Those pricks would _NOT _get the better of me; they will _NOT _dictate my life... But they _will_ pay for what they did, and I will come out of this stronger, they will _not_ beat me...

"They won't beat me..." I whispered.

"No, they won't. I think we'll start to pick up our training sessions, what do you think?"

"I think it's about bloody time, but what made you change your mind?"

"There is a time and place for everything Rose, now is the time to get serious." _Okay... I'm not going to argue._

"I can see where running is important Dimitri, but screw it – I need to hit something."

His chest rumbled and bounced under my head.

"Okay, okay... I'll let you hit something. If we're going to do this, then you need to sleep. Seeing as it's been a big night and it's late... I'll let you sleep in tomorrow."

"Really?" I asked sceptically.

"Yeah." I heard the smile in his voice so I knew I wasn't going to like the answer to my next question.

"So what time do I need to be out front in the morning?"

"I'll be waiting at 6:30..."

"_What!" _I said as I sat up. "That's only half an hour... I know our definitions on certain things differ, but I have to let you know... getting an extra half an hour is _not_ my version of sleeping in."

"No? So if you came running out the front door at 6:30 when you were supposed to be there at six, what would your excuse be?"

I tried to keep my stupid mouth from smiling... I really did!

"See... I'm letting you sleep in." He said victoriously. "So go to sleep Rose."

"Fine... _master!_ Will you stay until I go to sleep?"

"Okay." He agreed. I got up and grabbed my PJ's and took a quick shower; I couldn't sleep in this dress. When I turned to face him before shutting the bathroom door, I couldn't miss the look he was giving me. I quickly changed and came back out to the bedroom; Dimitri was now sitting in the chair by the window. He glanced up from the book he was reading and did a double take. I almost asked if he saw something he liked, but thought better of it.

"Nice... rabbit." He said smirking as his eyes did a complete survey of me.

"Don't laugh... Liss bought them as a birthday present." Last year Liss bought me the pyjama's I was now wearing. Short cotton shorts in pale blue with little white rabbits all over them and a white singlet top edged in blue lace with a big grey bunny print on the front with a saying underneath... _"A cute little tail attracts a lot of attention."_

I noticed that Dimitri had turned down my bed while I was in the shower so I quickly jumped into bed and pulled up the sheet.

"Thank you for staying."

"You're welcome, now go to sleep."

"Good night master." I could hear his soft laughing across the room.

"Good night Roza." I smiled happily as I reached up and turned off my bedside lamp and then rolled onto my side.


	17. Dimitri Stuck In The Middle Outtake 3

**Well, we finally get to hear from our favourite Russian again! :-) He has a lot to say in this chapter...  
Thank you all for your wonderful reviews, and to all the non-registered reviewers... I can't reply to you personally, but thank you for all of your reviews. I love hearing what everyone has to say and what you all think of my representation of these characters.  
Keep reviewing... ;-)**

**On with the show!**

**Sandy**

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**Dimitri Stuck in The Middle. Outtake 3**

When I came to pick up the girls for our night out at the movies my heart nearly stopped when she opened the door. She was exquisite. Her black satin dress clung to every curve she had; I didn't know where to look, her body or her bare shoulders – her deep olive bare shoulders. It was a herculean effort on my part not to ravish her where she stood. Every time I think of what I felt in those few seconds, I want to cringe. Not that I didn't _like_ those feelings, quite the opposite in fact, I just can't _have_ these feelings for her. I'm her instructor, her trainer, her friend and she's been through so much... and that's not even mentioning the age difference. I can't push myself onto her like that; I have to push these feelings down as far as I can.

Even though I was the oldest of the group, I didn't feel out of place. I felt more relaxed and free tonight than I have in a long time. Walking into the diner, I couldn't help but look at the vision in front of me. When my eyes made their way downwards, they didn't miss how smooth her shape was; in a dress that tight... certain lines are normally seen. The whole time we ate, my mind went over and over what I'd seen, or _not_ seen as the case may be. I asked her to come with me to pay; I had to have another look. Once again – smooth as a babies... bottom! Surely she wouldn't be...? No... not Roza.

By the time we got to the cinema, I could think of nothing else, being alone with her in the car with her dress riding high up her thighs; it was driving me insane. Once inside, I saw she was anxious about being in amongst all the people, and I did want to ease her discomfort, but that didn't stop me from turning the situation for my own selfish needs. I needed to... investigate.

Standing in line for the popcorn, I drew her closer into my body. I couldn't help it, I had to know... As I shifted from one foot to the other in what I hoped was a very nonchalant move, I slipped my hand downwards to where I know I should feel – the evidence, one way or the other...

I had to grit my teeth when my hands felt nothing... Only one answer; she had nothing on underneath. _God help me! _Sitting beside her in the cinema was sheer torture, especially when she kept crossing and uncrossing her legs. Having her leaning into my side was... bliss. I knew that after tonight I'd have to keep my distance both physically and emotionally, but that didn't mean I couldn't enjoy the here and now when I had a reason to have her close. I had no idea what had just happened in the movie, my mind was centred solely on Roza.

Then everything went to hell!

It's been a long time since I've felt so much rage; that desire to exterminate, but I felt it last night. When I realised who it was that was standing in front of us at the cinemas I wanted to rip him to shreds; rip his cold, dead heart out of his body. After all, anyone who could do what he did to Rose and have no remorse, could only be described as cold and dead; all that was needed now was to make it official and I'd be happy to help. My need to not only be _with_ Rose but also to protect her escalates every day.

When she fell asleep on my shoulder earlier while watching the movie at the house, everything in that room disappeared. The only things that I was aware of was the now familiar tingle I get when her skin touches mine, the incredible warmth that radiated from her to me and her intoxicating scent that flooded the area around me. Again I had no idea what movie I'd just seen even though my eyes never left the television screen. Well, I looked at her once and I must say that she looked more beautiful when she slept than when she was awake, if that's even possible; so calm and serene... That was until the nightmare hit.

The first thing we heard was a small whimper, then a twitch of her hands. A slightly louder murmur had Lissa turn to look at her with a worried look after muting the movie.

"Liss, it's just getting to the good part..." Mia yelled.

"No..." Rose whispered at my shoulder.

"Oh God..." Liss said under her breath.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

"Is she alright?" Adrian asked.

"Another nightmare, she has them every night, some worse than others..." Liss told us as she put her hand up to her nose. "She can get a little violent with the bad ones, so just be aware that you may have to hold her down."

As soon as the words left Lissa's mouth, Rose started breathing more rapidly and throwing her head from side to side.

"No... No... let go..." she whispered in gasps.

"Wake her up." Natoli said.

"Do it gently, ease her out of it." Liss said.

I gingerly moved Rose off my shoulder and layed her back against the lounge. I quickly kneeled down in front of her and took her arms in my hands.

"Rose, wake up." I said softly. Liss kept telling me not to try and wake her suddenly.

"_ARGH! Mason, help!" _She yelled suddenly... _Mason? _

"Oh no... It's always a bad one when she dreams of Mason." Liss told me.

"Rose..." I said louder.

"Mason, help me... No..." She screamed louder. She was now thrashing against me and Adrian and Nat both moved to come help but Lissa stopped them and said if she woke up and found them touching her, it would only make things worse. "Leave me _alone_... Get _off_ me!"

One arm twisted in my grip and swung out.

"Rose... _Roza_." I knew she liked hearing her name in its Russian form, so I hoped that it would be something that would get through the fog of the nightmare. Her body slackened momentarily like she'd heard me but then started up again.

"Mason..." Again I held her and called out her name. Then she reached her arm up to the side as the rest of her slowed, but this time I could see that she wasn't trying to hit out, she was reaching out to someone. I took her wrist in my hand and brought it back to her side.

"Roza, open your eyes." I said softly. Her eyes slowly fluttered opened and she looked directly at me. My heart shattered when I saw the pain in them. I could feel her trying to move her arms, but I wanted to make sure she was actually awake. "Do you see me?"

She nodded almost frenetically as tears fell in earnest. I pulled away slightly from where I was leaning over her and put my hands against her face. "You're alright now. It was just a bad dream, okay?" I said softly.

My heart broke a little more when she said that she remembered... In my mind, the one shining light in all of this was the fact that she couldn't remember the actual attack. Now we would have to sit back and wait for the potential devastation that could put her recovery right back to the start. I only hoped that this would make her stronger. When Liss told me to take her upstairs, I turned to look at her two girl friends both crying and the guys in varying degrees of emotions – sad, worried, angry; murderous in Adrian's case. Whenever I'd held Rose in my arms, nothing felt more natural – even now. I just wished the circumstances were different. She clutched desperately to my shirt as I took her to her room, she softly whimpered as she repeated that she now remembered; I couldn't stop myself as I placed my lips against the top of her head as I walked towards her door. I so desperately wanted to do more, show her how much my heart was breaking for her, but I couldn't. This was all I could give her; a silent, secret show of what I was feeling.

I bent down and placed her on the top of the quilt and asked her if she wanted to talk about it. I didn't really think she would, she tended to clamp up when something really bad happened and then I'd have to slowly draw it out of her. When she moved over and looked up at me, I knew what she wanted.

_No, no, no... don't do it. _I thought to myself. If only she knew of my thoughts in regards to her over the last few days, and the restraint it took to keep my hands off her... Then she dropped her head in defeat at my reluctance.

Being the masochist I've so obviously become where she's concerned... I relented.

I sat down beside her and took her into my arms. Her head was only inches below my lips once again as she rested against my chest, it wouldn't surprise me if she could hear my heart thumping... if she did, she didn't say anything. After some gentle coaxing, she finally told me what this nightmare was about, also a little about her previous ones.

Some mornings when she'd come down for training, I could tell by her eyes that she'd had a bad night. I knew she was having a hard time, I just didn't realise just how bad. The more she spoke of her feelings of weakness and helplessness, the stronger my attachment to her became. I knew I was done for, I knew where my feelings were heading. I just had to be strong and not let them show in any way other than friendship. That's what she needed from me right now.

Before I knew what I was doing, I was telling her that I knew all about the fear she was feeling right now. I almost told her what had actually happened in Russia... about _her._ If she hadn't spoken when she did, I probably would have. Then she said what I hoped and prayed that I would hear from her...

"They won't beat me..."

I knew then that she would fight for her life like never before... that the memory of the attack wouldn't be too much for her to bear. Her strength amazed me. I was sure that tomorrow a different Rose would get out of bed. Any doubt about that was wiped from my mind with her answer to my statement about upping her training.

"I think it's about bloody time, but what made you change your mind?"

I had planned on taking her slow, but after tonight's events, I knew she needed more.

"I can see where running is important Dimitri, but screw it – I need to hit something."

I laughed as I felt a lightness come start to fill me. When I told her she could sleep in, I had to really control my amusement as I anticipated her reaction... She didn't disappoint. She was not impressed with my version of sleeping in but she had no answer to my argument on the matter. When she smiled at me, I knew I had her. I told her to go to sleep; I could only hope that she would be able to after her nightmare downstairs.

But I really wished she would stop calling me 'master'... I loved it of course, but in all the wrong ways. Every time that word left her mouth, it stirred a deep '_something'_ in me. I knew what that 'something' was but if I didn't give it a name, then it couldn't come to life... right? She grabbed some pyjamas and went into her bathroom to change. I nearly choked on my own tongue when she came outside. She looked so damned cute... but it was her legs that was first and foremost in my mind.

"Nice... rabbit." I said smiling as I nodded to her PJ's; they didn't really look like something that she would buy for herself but I couldn't stop my eyes from taking in every inch of her. When she explained that they were a present from Lissa, everything made sense...

_Now_ I knew beyond a doubt that I was the biggest masochist on the planet by agreeing to stay here while she slept. I knew I would have to sit in that chair and watch her lay down in nothing but a flimsy scrap of material... all this after knowing I'd spent the night in her company while she had gone commando under her dress. My powers of restraint had never been tested to this degree before in my life. I wanted nothing more than to take her in my arms and claim her as my own. The saying on the singlet top kept making my eyes go straight to her 'tail'... and what a cute tail it was. _Shit!_

Then she called me master again... _Go to sleep Rose... please! _

I couldn't help but laugh at my situation... I was willingly in the bedroom of the girl I've fantasized over more times than I should while trying to control the urge to _be_ her master... It hurt more than I cared to admit, how hard it was to stay seated when I wanted to be so much closer. A few minutes later I could hear her breathing even out and I knew she was asleep so I stood up and walked over to the bed. I watched her for a while, on the lookout for the indication that her nightmare was resuming. Her eyes moved slowly behind their lids and her hands were still. Her breathing was slow and even... I squatted down beside the bed so that I was level with her.

"I wish..." I whispered. I knew what I wished for; what I wanted but I was scared to say it out loud. I reached up to push a lock of hair away from her face and before I knew it... I was making my wish. "I wish I could be free to be what you want; I want it too."

I took a deep breath, stood up and then walked back to the chair. About twenty minutes after she fell asleep her door slowly opened. I blinked and squinted against the light that poured in and once my eyes adjusted; I could see that it was Lissa.

"Hey." She said softly. "Is she asleep?" She asked as she squeezed into the room.

"Yeah, about 20 minutes ago. So far there's no dreaming, so hopefully that's a good sign."

"Mmm, maybe... Listen, everyone's gone home so I'll stay with her now if you'd like to go too."

I knew I couldn't stay here all night, but at the same time I didn't want to leave her either.

"Will you be okay if she has another one?" I asked.

"Yeah I should be, Mia and Christian are staying tonight so if I need help, they're here." I nodded knowing that she wasn't going to be alone.

"What's the time?" I asked as I stood up.

"Ah, oh crap..." she said as she twisted her wrist to see the time. "...it's nearly 2am; would you prefer to stay seeing as it's so late?"

_No... yes... no... Oh, who am I kidding, of course I would prefer to stay. _

"If you don't mind, thank you; I'll just bunk down on the lounges. She still wants to train in the morning so it's probably better for me to stay here anyway."

Liss told me where spare blankets and pillows were stored and as I went to leave Rose's room, Liss climbed into bed with her. It warmed my heart to see she had such a loving friend. I said my good nights and after grabbing a pillow and blanket, I went down to the games room and quickly fell asleep.

The next morning I woke up to the giggling face of Rose. She was standing over me tickling my face with the ends of hair.

"Oh, you're painful..." I said yawning and stretching. "How are you awake before me?"

"I had more sleep than you. Get up lazy bones... you've got some serious training to put me through..."

Yup! Different Rose...

I growled and leapt up from the lounge chair and grabbed her around the waist as she went to run away. She laughed as she twisted in my arms and told me to take her to the kitchen. I had to remember the promise I'd made to push these feelings away, so I put her down and followed her out of the games room. When we got to the kitchen, I gaped at her incredulously as she grabbed two chocolate covered donuts and proceeded to wolf them down.

"I'm hungry..." she stated with a full mouth and a shrug of her shoulders.

"I can see that. Don't tell me this is your normal breakfast."

"No, not normal..." I sighed in relief. "Sometimes Mrs D is up early and makes me eat cereal..." She giggled around her mouthful of sugar, but I didn't know if she was just playing with me or not. Well two could play at that game.

"Well, in that case, I'll have to make sure that you work off all that sugar." She stopped chewing...

"Oh come on Comrade, you know I'm only joking... No need to go overboard." _Comrade? _I think I'd prefer 'master' than that.

"You need something better than that if you want to have enough stamina to keep up with the training I'm going to put you through Rose."

"That sounds ominous... Well in that case, you need to eat too."

I only had what I was wearing last night, so I told her I'd get something from home as I'd have to get changed. Soon we were walking through the front door of my house.

"Dimka, is that you?" I heard from the kitchen.

"Yes Mama."

"Thanks for the phone call last night son. I was worried that..." she said as she walked out to meet me. "Oh, Rose... hello darling."

"Hi Olena. Sorry, I have a feeling that it was my fault he didn't call."

My mother's face softened as she explained what kept me from returning home last night and that by the time I could get to a phone it was early morning anyway.

"Well, I'm happy that he was there for you darling. Have you had breakfast yet?"

"Yup, I have..." Rose said as we followed my mother into the kitchen.

"What you had Roza, could never be called breakfast."

"Hey, I'll have you know that they are very healthy..."

"Oh, I can't wait to hear you explain this... by all means, continue." I smiled as I leant up against the counter.

"Well, I'm getting calcium from the milk and protein from the eggs that go into the batter, and all the experts agree that chocolate is good for you..." She finished with a head nod as if to say... '_There, take that!'... _

"You could explain yourself out of anything, couldn't you?"

"If I put my mind to it..." She said as she stuck her chin out wilfully.

I laughed and shook my head as I turned around to look at my mother and was met with a peculiar look... Her eyes darted between the two of us before handing me my breakfast. I knew that look... I knew I'd be having a chat with her sooner rather than later, but I also knew she wouldn't bring anything up right at this moment... I couldn't help but wave the bagel in front of Roza's nose that my mother gave me.

"This is what you should be eating, not those rings of sugar you stuffed down your throat."

"Yeah whatever..." she said smiling.

After changing I drove us over to the youth centre and took her to our normal workout area. We went through the normal stretches and then into some light weights before going to the sparring mats. This morning was the start of her fight training. I'd already taught her some fight moves in class so she had the basics, now I was going to amp it up a bit.

I strapped her knuckles lightly before giving her some light fighting gloves to put on then I grabbed the small hand block pads for me. I got her to go through some hitting routines; I had to teach her about timing, after that, we went onto some kicking routines. I was actually surprised by the power she had behind her, she was stronger than I thought she'd be. After about half an hour, we were both sweating and breathing hard so I showed her some moves that combined both punching and kicking.

"Alright..." I said as I put down the block pads. "I want you to come at me with what you've learnt so far and I'll block."

"Okay... Why did you put the block down then?"

"Your attackers won't have block pads Rose and hitting a body is a lot different from hitting a foam block. Come on..."

"You want me to kick you?"

"No... I want you to attack me."

A small smile pulled at her mouth a moment before she started yelling... Thank God she wasn't trying to do a sneak attack. Without the block pads I finally felt just how strong she was.

"ARGH! Why can't I hit you?" She said after a while.

"You're only learning Rose, give it time... I'm sure you'll be giving me a run for my money before you know it."

With that she let fly with a kick to my ribs... _Shit! That hurt..._ "Good... excellent." I said with a wince, but I was proud of her. By the time we'd finished, she had some of the fighting patterns down like she'd been doing them for years. I was right – she _was_ a natural, she had a fighter's spirit.

I felt a lot better about her outlook by the time I dropped her back home, I knew she'd come thought this stronger than she ever expected and I must admit that it made me feel a bit heady to know that _I_ was going to be the one to transform her. I then went home to get everything ready for work tomorrow.

As promised, Rose was opening the front door at 5:30 am on Monday morning. I didn't think she'd do it, but she did. She looked better this morning than she had for a while so I hoped that meant that she'd had a good night sleep. After we'd finished training I took her home and said that I'd see her later that night at the studio. I couldn't describe the feeling that I got seeing this new Rose emerge from the wreckage that she was even as little as a couple of days ago. I went home and showered before getting dressed in my work uniform that I picked up on Saturday.

=x=

I walked up to the door of my new boss and knocked.

"Come in." I heard from inside. "Ah, Mr Belikov, it's good to see you."

"Thank you Ms Hathaway. It's good to be here."

"Janine, please. Okay, first up, here's your weapon and credentials." I nodded as I strapped my new pistol in my body holster and then pocketed my badge and paperwork. "Now the man that you were with the other day wishes to have you work with him again so that's where you'll be going today. He's got three meetings to go to. You'll be partnered up with a man by the name of Mikhail Tanner; he's one of the best."

I thought it was strange to guard a business man in the way I did the other day. It wasn't him I was protecting, it was his paperwork. That wasn't really normal and I must admit that it didn't sit well with me for some reason.

"No problems." She handed me a folder with where we were going and where to pick up the client.

Half an hour later my partner pulled up outside the hotel and within minutes the man from the other day walked out with another man and got into the limo. I gave a quick greeting and confirmed the first address and then Mikhail raised the dividing window separating us from the client. We pulled up outside the lobby of our first stop and I got out with the men and went inside as Tanner parked the car.

"Don't let this leave your sight" My client said as he handed me his briefcase.

"Certainly, Mr Dashkov."

We went to the front desk where we were told what floor we were expected at and directed to the elevators. I stood in front of my client as the doors opened. I took a step out and glanced around taking in my surroundings.

"This way please, gentlemen." The receptionist said as she walked off.

"My partner will be arriving soon; a Mr Tanner."

"Certainly, I'll show him in when he arrives."

The next two hours was spent standing behind my client as he negotiated the buying of some sort of computer chips. I didn't hear a lot of what went on as I was keeping an eye on my surroundings. The other two meetings were much the same, although I must admit that the things they were negotiating to buy were somewhat peculiar.

Mikhail drove us all back to the client's hotel at the end of the day, but as I opened the door for him, he told us to wait as he was leaving the hotel and going to the other mans house. I went up to Mr Dashkov's room with him while he got his things together and check-out, while the other guy gave his address to Tanner.

"What a weird day." Tanner said quietly as we drove to the other guy's house.

"Yeah, I know."

"Wonder what it is that he's into. All the stuff he was dealing in was... odd to say the least." _I agree..._

Just over half an hour later Tanner turned into a familiar street and as he slowed the car before Lissa and Rose's place, I got even more confused. I couldn't believe it when he actually turned into their driveway. _Shit! Who are these guys?_

I got out and opened the door for the men and quickly made my way back to the passenger door. I only hoped that no-one had seen me. It wasn't that I was worried about anyone finding out, but it could cause an even bigger conflict of interest than the one I currently find myself in.

Soon after Tanner pulled the car into the underground carpark at work and I went up to tell Janine that we were back and clock off for the day.

"How'd it go?" Janine asked when I walked in.

"Good. No problems." I told her. "I was wondering if you knew if I'd have permanent start times yet."

"Do you need that for some reason?"

"Well, it would be good if I could start around 7:30 in normal circumstances. That said, I don't mind having to be here earlier if it's important though. Also I can't work Monday or Friday nights as I have a previous commitment that I can't change at this point in time."

"Hmm, Friday nights could be a problem on occasion, but I suppose we can work all that out when we get there. I'm fine with your start time, there'll be times when I won't even need you that early but you'll know in advance once you start building up permanent clients. Mr Dashkov said that he'll probably need you for another month or two while he wraps up his business here."

"He was with another man today; do you know who he was?"

"No, I don't."

We said our goodbyes and I made my way home to get ready for class tonight. At least our morning trainings wouldn't be interfered with.

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**Sorry, forgot to add, I've uploaded some pictures to go with this story in Photobucket, there's a link on my profile page if anyone wants to have a look!  
Also a little slideshow for Fight Back!  
Thanks Sandy**


	18. Chapter 14 Revelations and Epiphanies

**Sorry for the delay guys... Thanks to my wonderful beta deliciouse... And thank you to everyone who reviewed. To those of you who ask; yes our dynamic duo will wake up to themselves soon... but hey, it took Richelle 3 books to get them to that part, I'll get them there quicker than that though... hehehehe**

**Raechel, you asked about Dimitri's job... Read on... LOL!**

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**14 Revelations & Epiphanies **

Monday night couldn't come fast enough. I was so anxious to know if Dimitri's new job was going to interfere with our training. I'd missed him this morning and my relief was almost palpable when he told me that it was all good.

"But I need to talk to you after class if you have time." He said. My face must have shown my uneasiness with that statement so he quickly told me that nothing was wrong.

Of course Adrian came through with his promise and returned with all the guys, apparently _they_ didn't want to keep coming but as we all know, Adrian can be very persuasive when he wants to be. I swear that he can make people do anything he wants them to do. He could sell ice cubes to Eskimo's for the price of a small car and they'd still thank him for letting them buy it from him. And by the looks of things, I don't think he had a hard time convincing Andre to come back, not by how he was flirting with Sydney.

Soon the class was finished and nearly everyone was gone from the studio. My friends made their way out to the carpark to wait for me.

"How was work?" I asked him.

"Boring, that's actually what I wanted to talk to you about."

"I hope that doesn't mean anything bad." Whenever my parents opened with that line; it was always bad... _That's what I wanted to talk to you about – your fish is dead..., your dog ran away... your father will be gone for six months... Always bad..._

"No... sit." he said patting the floor next to him. I sat down and he continued. "I don't think I ever told you what I actually do for a living have I?" I shook my head. "My family came here a few years after the _thing_ with my father and then a little more than a year ago, I went back for work. I'm in security, specifically I am a bodyguard. I was trained here and in Russia and then a few months ago I came back to live here in the US."

"You're kidding me. My mother is in the same line of work."

"Really, where does she work?"

"Oh she runs Guardian Security."

"Guardian?" Dimitri asked me with a peculiar look.

"Yeah, why?"

"That's who I just started working for. Don't tell me your mother is Janine? I thought your last name was Mazur."

"Hang on... you work for my mother?" I asked shocked. Of all the places he could work... "And why would you think my last name was Mazur?"

"I heard Lissa talk about a man named Abe and when I asked who she was talking about she said he was your father, I just assumed. Your mother is Janine..." he said shaking his head in disbelief. "Well, that makes sense."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I said indignantly. I didn't know if I should be insulted or not.

"Nothing bad, just she's one of the toughest women I've ever met; now I know where you get it from." _Okay... not an insult, I think..._

"Um... thanks? Hang on, if you didn't already know this, what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Oh, ah... I can't say too much, but do you know a Mr Dashkov?"

_Huh! What the hell? _After that last bomb that he dropped, I didn't think he could say anything that would shock me as much – guess I was wrong... That was _SO_ not what I ever thought I'd hear come out of his mouth.

"Ah... Yeah, he's Nat's father; one of the guys from tonight. How do _you_ know him?" I was almost scared of his answer, surely someone as good as Dimitri couldn't be friends with _him._

"He's my client at the moment. Today started out a normal, everyday job until my partner drove up your driveway this afternoon to drop them off. You could have knocked me over with a feather when that happened. He had someone else with him today."

"Wow... that's just... wow." It didn't take me long to remember seeing Viktor and Mr D come home, so I knew who he was talking about. "Oh, that other guy would have been Lissa's dad, Eric Dragomir." I couldn't believe how all of our lives were so interwoven... It was like we were meant to know each other. Fated almost...

"I still can't believe that my boss is you mother." He said shaking his head again.

"I apologise in advance." I said remorsefully screwing up my nose.

"Don't... I rather like how upfront she is. It's better working for someone like that, at least you always know where you stand and what to expect. In this line of work, it's better than working for someone who seems nice to your face." I never looked at it like that before.

The next week went fast. Our mornings were the highlight of my life right now. Dimitri was true to his word and upped the ante... But fight training was a _lot _harder than just the running and small weights that he'd been doing with me at first. We still did that of course; he no longer drove to my house to pick me up. We'd run back to the Y and then do the weights before getting into the hard stuff.

I could see my body shape had changed slightly in the little time I'd been training. It had been just under a month now since I started with Alberta but between Dimitri's workouts and what I was doing on my own as well, I was no longer bony as I'd been after the attack. I had put on weight and muscle and whenever I'd look at myself in the mirror, I couldn't help but smile a little. I wondered if Dimitri had noticed.

Days passed and it was now Thursday and I was in Oksana's office waiting for her as normal.

"Good morning Rose." She greeted me as she walked in.

"Hi Oksana."

As she sat in her chair, her head tilted slightly as she looked at me.

"Had a good week?" she asked.

"Yes and no." Her eyebrows went up again indicating that she wanted me to explain. "Well, the week didn't start off too good, but it was the catalyst for the rest of my week improving you could say."

"Go on..."

"I went out with a group of friends on Saturday night to the movies."

"And by friends you mean males too?"

"Yeah, all friends though... There was Liss and Mia of course and their boyfriends Christian and Eddie, Dimitri, Lissa's brother Andre, Adrian and Nat, but those last three didn't join us until later on."

"That's wonderful Rose." She said smiling. "That was a huge step you took, I'm really proud of you for taking that initiative." I was about to say that it was nothing when she continued. "You really don't know just how brave that was of you to do that of your own volition; to put yourself out there like that."

"Thanks... It was all going well until we left the cinema."

"What happened?"

"The ones who attacked me, they were there; out on bail apparently. They tried to antagonise me and when Dimitri tried to lead me outside they started in on Eddie. He was Mason's cousin and he was there when they killed him... It didn't take much to light the fuse and there was almost a fight. Christian grabbed a hold of him before anything happened; it was almost like Jesse was trying to make something happen."

"He probably was."

"Yeah, that's what Christian said. Anyway, we all went back home and watched a movie but my mind wasn't really able to concentrate on it. I had so much going around in my head; I was exhausted. I fell asleep on the lounge and then had another 'Mason' nightmare, only this one was different."

"What do you mean?"

"I was back in my room – in my parent's house, and he was standing at the bottom of my bed. I couldn't really make out his face though; it was all fuzzy... but I knew it was him. Then I felt like I was being held down and when I opened my eyes..." I took deep, calming breaths like she showed me...

"It's alright Rose, no-one can hurt you here – take your time."

"_They_ were there," I said in a whisper, "...Jesse, Ralf and Aaron. They were... you know. I tried to get Mason to help me but he just stood there. He reached out a hand but he was too far away, I couldn't reach him... Then I heard my name being called; I knew it was Dimitri's voice but I couldn't seem to come out of it straight away. I did eventually... I upset everyone, so Liss said for Dimitri to take me upstairs to my room, he helped me calm down and then he stayed with me until I was able to fall asleep. When I woke up, he was gone but Liss was lying beside me."

I looked up to find Oksana nodding her head as she scribbled in her little book with puckered lips. She looked like she didn't like what I'd said.

"Did I do something wrong?" I asked.

"No, not at all Rose. So Dimitri stayed with you?"

"Yeah, he sat in the chair by the window. It was nice to know I wasn't in the room alone. It sort of made me feel like if the dream came back; he'd be there to pull them off me."

"You're quite close to Dimitri, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am. I feel safe with him. He's strong and when I'm around him; I feel strong too, like I can take care of myself. He's teaching me to defend myself and in a way, I feel that a bit of the confidence I once had is starting to return. On Saturday night when I talked to him after seeing Jesse, he asked me how I felt."

"And what did you tell him?"

"How weak I felt, how scared, how much I hated feeling like that. After I let it all out; there was a 'light bulb' moment, like someone switched on a light in my head. I _hated_ how I felt, I hated how Jesse had taken my strength from me and in that second I was determined to not let him dictate my life or feelings anymore. That's when Dimitri said he'd step up my training, and he has."

She sat there for a few seconds; her eyes traversing my face. I don't know what she was looking for but I guess she found it because she started to smile.

"He's been good for you."

"Very." I said emphatically. "I look up to him and I respect him a lot, it doesn't hurt that he's so good looking and as far as silver linings go, I think I hit the jackpot!" I couldn't help the giggle that spilled out. Even straight laced Oksana had to laugh at that...

"I'm going to say something now." She said when we stopped giggling. "I don't want you to take this the wrong way, and I _am_ glad you have someone that you can lean on like that, but I don't want you to put him up on a pedestal."

"I couldn't do that, I'd never see him otherwise... he's _huge_!" By her face she didn't think that was as funny as my last little quip... And here I was thinking that Oksana really did have a sense of humour. "Sorry..."

"The way you talk about him almost borders on hero worship and that can be a problem. He's only human Rose and humans make mistakes. Once people start seeing someone as the 'hero', things can fall apart quickly when that person makes a mistake; it can be devastating. You need to build yourself up on your own, not on the shoulders of someone else."

"I can see what you're saying, but you told me that I needed to learn how to accept help from others over what happened to me, that I couldn't do it on my own. That it was okay to let others be my strength... now you're saying that I shouldn't do that?" I was getting a little hot under the collar now...

"I did say that and it's still true..."

"Well make up your bloody mind Oksana, which is it? Let people help or not?"

"Calm down Rose." She said calmly. "You definitely should let others help your recovery, but they need to be the strength you need to pull _yourself_ out of your turmoil, not to be the ones to do it for you. I'm not saying that what Dimitri is doing isn't great, because it is. He's giving you the tools that you need to fight back. What I would rather see, is instead of you walking beside him, holding his hand; use the skills he's teaching you to walk in _front_ of him and as you move forward, let him be there to catch you if you stumble."

_Huh... another light bulb moment..._ She must have seen the light switch on too because she smiled again.

We spoke for a while more about the things I'm learning with Dimitri, she even asked me for a little demonstration; much to my mortification... She said she was surprised at how confident I looked and if she didn't know any better, she would have thought I'd been doing it for years.

=x=

Friday morning came around and when we got to the Y, Dimitri told me he was going to show me some moves that I could use in close contact with an offender.

"What I'll show you today is some wrist breaks."

"What are they?"

"It's a move that you can do when someone grabs a hold of you. If they're not expecting you to fight back, this move is potentially what will allow you to escape."

_That sounded promising. _

"Alright now... get into a normal fighting stance that I've shown you. Okay, that's good." He said. "Now, as you know, the strength of a move comes from the whole body, not just the limb you're using."

"Yes master." I said with a slight smirk.

"Rose..." he warned. I just rolled my eyes as I thought how he could be so uptight sometimes... "With this move you have to involve twisting your hips."

He came up behind me and placed his hands on my hips... _distracting much? _

"Now, I'll show the wrist movement in a minute but you need to know how to do this first." He moved me slowly a few times at first. "Okay, that's good. Now when you add the wrist movement into it, you'll have to do this part fast, more forceful."

I nodded in reply, still slightly distracted... He tightened his hands slightly and together we got this part down pat!

"Did I do it right?"

"Yes you did. I told you that you're a natural at this, you pick things up fast. Okay, I'll show you the next part."

He explained how there were certain parts of the hand that were weaker than others in a grip and they were what we had to use to our advantage. "Here is the weakest part..." he said grabbing the area between where my thumb and pointer finger met. "Apply enough pressure here and you should be able to get out of most wrist holds, especially if they're not expecting you to do this move."

He got me to grab him around the wrist to show me the move but my fingers barely made it around. Suddenly Mini me was pulling out the measuring tape to see if his wrist measurement correlated with any other part of his body... _Shit! Get your mind out of the gutter woman... _I scalded myself. Mini me just wiggled her eyebrows and grinned at me like the evil fiend she is...

"Grab tighter Rose." _So I did. _What I wasn't expecting was for him to twist out of my grip so easily.

"That seemed a little too easy." I said to him.

"It was." That comment earned him my signature 'eat shit' glare... "Try again."

Once again I grabbed him and made sure that I really was holding on as tight as I could, but again he got out of it seemingly without any effort on his part.

"What am I doing wrong? I know I'm not as strong as you, but you wouldn't be showing me this if you didn't think it was something I could do." A smirk pulled at his lips...

"That's true, but master this move and you'll be able to get out of most grips just as easily." He got me to grab his wrist again and he showed me the move once again in slow motion. He twisted his arm so that the inner part of his wrist was near where my fingers met and pulled out of my grip. "You could probably get out just as easily if you were up against someone the same size or smaller than you, but up against someone bigger... like me, that's where the hip movement comes in."

"Okay, so show me how to put it all together."

"I'm going to hold you loosely at first alright." He said as he grabbed hold of my wrist. _Again with the tingling; I wondered if he felt it too. _"Now, twist your body around until you get to the weak point in my grip and pull you hand into yourself."

I did what he said and true to his word, I got out easy.

"Don't get too cocky, I wasn't trying to keep a hold of you... yet." Each time we did the move, his grip on me got tighter and tighter, soon I couldn't break free. I let out a growl in frustration, which earned me a small chuckle as I wriggled against him. Soon I stopped fighting and just looked up at him in expectation...

"_Now_ I'm trying to keep a hold of you."

"But I'm using my hips."

"Obviously not enough." Oh, he really shouldn't try to be cute with me...

"So... harder... faster...?" Mini me giggled like a little school girl at the look on Dimitri's face.

He cleared his throat before answering. "Yes. Put your arm out and make a fist. Now move your hips as you did before and turn your wrist so that your thumb in facing downwards." It took a couple of tries, but I soon got it right. "Do you want me to use all my strength now or build up to it?"

"All of it, no use pussy-footing around."

"No... no use at all." Again with the grinning...

The first two times I tried to put it all together, it didn't work so as Dimitri stood in front of me, I looked at where his hand still held my wrist and I thought about what I was doing wrong. After a little while of thinking, he went to tell me what I wasn't doing but I held up a finger to silence him.

"Okay, let's try again." I said after a few more seconds. My first try I nearly freed myself... the second I succeeded.

"Excellent." Dimitri said with a smile. "One more time and then we'll try the other wrist." Again I got free, but I struggled more with my left arm as not only was it the weaker of my arms but Dimitri was using his right hand to hold me with. When my wrist became red from constant pressure and twisting of the skin, Dimitri called it a day.

"You picked that up really fast; I'll show you something else next time." He said as I rubbed my skin. "I didn't hurt you did I?"

"No, you didn't. I need to know how to do this..."

"Okay, well I need to get to work."

"How's that going by the way?"

"Alright." He answered.

"Can't talk about it huh?"

"No. Let's get this packed up." We quickly got the mats put away and before I knew it, I was watching him drive away from Lissa's place.

A couple of hours later, Liss, Mia and I were out at the pool while the guys were inside playing Gran Turismo. Someone cleared their throat behind us and I turned around to see Nat standing there.

"Mind if I come out and hang with you guys for a while?" He asked. Everyone looked at me to see how I felt about it so I said it was fine. Instead of just walking straight out of the door; which would have made him walk right beside me, he walked to the left, closer to where Mia sat.

"So have you girls got anything big planned for the rest of the holidays?"

"Well, I might." Mia said daintily.

"Oh really?" Liss asked. "Obviously plans that don't include us..." she added as she nudged my elbow with hers, "...seeing as _we_ know nothing about them."

"Well, it sort of only came up last night. Eddie asked me if I'd like to go to his place in California for a week, you know before we get bogged down with college."

Liss and I wagged our eyebrows at each other before we turned and smiled at her. Throughout high school Mia had a new guy almost on a weekly basis, I think the longest relationship she's had was maybe five weeks, but even then it was only a part time thing – her words, not mine. Her excuse was that she was just too damned awesome for one guy to handle before they went blind. Eddie was must have been some sort of superman to still be around five weeks after meeting her _and_ planning a trip home to his parents; either that or he was a real life 'Scott Summers' like the guy in X-Men and has his own 'Mia' protective sunglasses...

"So when is all this happening?" Liss asked her.

"In two weeks..." The look on her face was like she was expecting World War 3 to start from Lissa's mouth. But all she got was a grin.

"Excellent..." Liss said.

"So... does that mean that you don't have anything specific planned?" Nat asked Liss.

"Not that I know of, I'll have to see if Christian has anything planned. Why, did you have something in mind?"

"I was just wondering if you could show me around a bit, I haven't seen too much of the sights around town."

I looked at him wondering where he was going with this... I know that he'd been out with Adrian and Andre quite a few times so I couldn't understand why he wanted Liss to show him around. When I looked at her, I thought that she looked as confused as I did.

"Sure, I suppose I could do that. When would you like to go?" She asked.

"What about tomorrow?"

"I'll talk to Christian tonight and make sure he hasn't planned anything first but other than that... tomorrow should be good." Nat smiled slightly and gave a nod before standing and shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Are you guys coming again tonight?"

"Yup, I think your brother goes for reasons other than learning Tae Kwon Do." Liss tilted her head in confusion.

"Don't tell me you didn't see him on Monday night Liss?" I asked sardonically.

"What... Monday? What did he do on Monday night?" I looked back to Nat to see him smirking and shaking his head slightly.

"He was practically throwing himself at Sydney all night. It's a wonder we didn't have to wipe up a lake with all the drooling he was doing."

"Really?" She said bending forward in her chair expectantly.

"Yeah, really... Don't worry Liss; your mind was otherwise occupied by its own object of desire."

"Well ladies," he said with a chuckle, "...on that note, I'm off to kick Adrian's butt."

"Oh... this day just keeps getting better..." I mumbled to myself. "Can I come watch? There's nothing I like more than a good ass kickin', especially if it involves Adrian."

"Rose..." Liss warned.

That night, Liss pulled up outside the Dojang, (which was apparently the name for a TKD school I'd found out), and sure enough, the brat pack had decided to return. True to form, Dimitri was really stepping up our lessons too, as much as I didn't particularly like having the guys here; I enjoyed watching them try to look seasoned fighters. Especially when Dimitri would pull them up for displays.

When he pulled Adrian up to show a move that he was going to teach us, Mini me got comfortable in her plush recliner chair with a bowl of popcorn, ready for the show... He tried his best, but against the God who walks – his good just wasn't good enough. I actually flinched when Adrian slammed in the mats when Dimitri threw him down. I had to bite the inside of my cheeks to stop from laughing when Adrian walked back towards us. He tried his best to cover up the grimace of pain as he walked, but he wasn't as successful as he would have liked.

As Liss and I practised the move, Dimitri walked around the room correcting people as he went. When he got to us, he smiled before asking me to step back while he showed Liss what she was doing wrong; by the look on Christian's face, I don't think he liked Dimitri that close.

"Okay Rose," he said after he finished with Liss. "Your technique isn't that far off. I'm going to come up behind you, and you're going to flip me... right?"

"Yup!" I said confidently. I was a little worried how I'd handle it at first, now that I remembered some of what happened in the attack but I shouldn't have worried... I didn't freak out. Dimitri wrapped his arm around my neck firmly with his right arm and securing his left hand behind my head... I was well and truly secured.

"Okay, now reach up with both hands and grab my elbow... good. Duck your chin in so that my arm is now off your neck... step forward..." His breath was right at my ear... "Now as you drop down onto your knee, I want you to put more force into the throw. You were doing alright with Liss, but to shake someone like me off, you'll need to put more effort in..." _Shake him off... I don't think so!_

I gave a quick nod and sank down onto my left knee, I tried to throw him over but couldn't. "What am I doing wrong?" I asked. His face was right beside mine...

"Well, we didn't do the movement fast enough for you to put the right amount of effort into it, so I was able to keep myself from falling forward; I just wanted to see that you had the movement right. We'll do it again, but this time I want you to put everything into it, okay."

"Yes master..." I said quietly over my shoulder at him. I don't know if he meant for me to hear the little growl, but I did. He released my neck and stood up, reaching down to lend me a hand. Then once again, he wrapped his arm around my neck...

"Go." He said simply. I reached up and grabbed his arm before tucking my chin in behind his elbow. I stepped forward and dropped to one knee, and then using all the strength I could muster, I bent forward and leant to the left; pulling him over my shoulder. Just before he landed, I lost my balance slightly and put my right hand onto the mats... I didn't hurt myself, but now his back was on top of my hand.

I fell forward unceremoniously onto his chest giggling... He had no idea just how much he made me lose my shit... I glanced up and found we were almost nose to nose.

Giggling stopped. Our eyes locked and everyone faded away...

"Go Rose..." Lissa's voice behind me broke the bubble I'd just found myself in. I blinked quickly as I pushed myself off Dimitri's chest.

"Yes... that was excellent Rose." Dimitri said distractedly as he stood up. "Keep practising." He gave a quick nod to Lissa before walking off to help some of the other women.

"That was weird..." Liss said with narrowed eyes as I watched him walk away. "I thought you two were going to kiss there for a second."

_Me too..._

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**_The slideshow/video thing was giving me trouble last chapter but it's all working A.O.K now... Go to my profile page for the new link..._**

_**Reviews are like having Dimitri's arm wrapped around you chest! :-) Warm and Cuddly!**_


	19. Chapter 15 Something's Not Right

**A/N: **Okay, just a quick thank you to my wonderful beta Deliciouse, you're doing great... :-) Thanks for helping me out. But just to let you all know, since she fixed up my boo-boo's, I've added anothere 1000 words, so if there are any mistakes, blame me! hehehe

This is a long one with about 6,500 words so happy reading guys! Oh and Dimitri's up next! Don't forget to review.

Sandy

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**15 Something's not right.**

The rest of Friday night's training was much the same... weird.

Sometimes you get the impression that you're getting certain vibes from people, and at first I thought I was the only one getting these vibes from Dimitri but Liss picked up on it too; it made me feel a little less paranoid – in a way. His whole demeanour changed after the... 'almost kiss' as Liss called it. Every time I would look at him, he was looking at me, but the look in his eyes was something I hadn't seen in them before, I'd swear it looked like regret. He didn't even say goodbye as we walked to the door; he was busy talking to one of the other ladies.

Mia pulled up and let us out just as Andre drove his car into the garage. We waved our goodbyes to Mia but before we could do more, a voice called out.

"Hey Rose..." Adrian stood beside the car as the other two collected their things. "I've written you a poem; would you like to hear it?"

After the uneasy shift in what is normally a night I look forward to, I really wasn't in the mood for Adrian's crap. I narrowed my eyes and put my hands on my hips.

"Oh, this should be good." Liss said from beside me. "Let's hear you poetic words Adrian..."

Nat and Andre snickered from the other side of the car to where Adrian was now theatrically clearing his throat.

'Rose is in Red,  
But never in Blue,  
Sharp as a thorn,  
And fights like one too.'

With a wiggle of his brows, the two knuckleheads behind him laughed out loud, all I could do was shake my head. On any other night I probably would have laughed as well, but not tonight...

"Don't give up your day job Adrian..." Lissa said dryly before we turned and went inside. Even after showering, I still felt... _blah! _I couldn't put a label on my feelings, something was... off. An hour after I got home from class, the house phone rang... it was Dimitri. He said that he had to cancel training as he had to go out of town first thing in the morning and wouldn't be back until early afternoon. Something about the way he spoke made me feel like that all of a sudden there was this chasm between us... and every second I spoke to him, the wider it got.

"Is everything alright Dimitri?"

"Yeah, why?" _That was short..._

"You just seemed... different in class, like something was wrong, that's all?"

"No. Ah, I have to get going Rose; I'll see you on Sunday."

_Okaaay..._

"Alright, are you sure I haven't done something to upset you?"

"No Rose. I'll talk to you then, bye."

"Bye..." I don't think he heard me, the line disconnected before I'd said the whole word... the word with a whole three letters! Something is _definitely_ not right... he'd never spoken to me like this before.

Before going to bed Liss came into my room to let me know that she and Nat would be out in the morning, that there were a few places that she wanted to show him.

"What sort of places Liss?"

"Well, he wanted to see some nice places he could take a girl out for dinner, you know, that sort of thing."

_So there is someone he has his eye on... _I thought to myself.

"Do you want to meet up at the diner later this afternoon, after we're finished?" she asked.

"Yeah, Dimitri had to cancel training for tomorrow; he's had to go out of town for the day, so the run will do me good. What time do you think you guys will be finished?"

"Not sure really, I'd say around three or four."

"Give me a call; I'll see if I can squeeze you in..." I said glibly, "...after all, my plans for tomorrow consist of sunbaking and swimming... I might be just too plum tuckered out..."

"Well, I'd hate to see that happen. I'd say to call Mia to assist you, you know, make sure you didn't overdo the sunbaking and swimming, but she was telling me at training about her plans that she's got with Eddie tomorrow."

"I'll be fine Liss; I can spend a day on my own you know."

"Okay, only if you're sure." I gave her an exasperated look hoping she'd leave so I could go to sleep.

I opened my eyes Saturday morning and for the first time since all this crap began, I didn't open them in fear and with a racing heart after a nightmare, _and_ I'd slept in... As the heat of the morning sun fingered its way across my skin, I laid there thinking about last night and the _almost_ _kiss_... Before his strange phone call when we got home, I would have bet anything that he felt what I felt... but going over and over it all was making me crazy. I got up and grabbed a quick shower before changing into my bikini.

I grabbed my IPod on my way out of my room and when I got downstairs, I found that I was here on my own... Mr & Mrs D had gone out for the day, they guys were all next door, and Liss... well, I knew where she was. I grabbed a small tub of yoghurt and strawberries from the fridge and a bowl from one of the overhead cupboards. I know I can buy fruity yoghurt but I liked it my way. I scooped out the yoghurt and cut up a rather large handful of plump red strawberries and mixed them up in the bowl with a dash of honey and cinnamon; this was one of my favourite things to eat. Then I went outside, plonked myself down on one of the sun lounges by the pool and put the bud of my earphones in before setting my IPod to shuffle.

A little later on when I started to get a little hot, I dove into the pool and did a few slow laps; the cool water on my hot skin was a welcomed relief.

After I got out of the pool I turned the large shade umbrella around so that it covered my sun lounge and laid back with more music. Sometime later I woke feeling hungry; I couldn't believe it when I saw that it was now just before 1pm. I went inside and made myself a sandwich. I was actually enjoying my day of solitude and now that I think about it, I don't think it's something that I've ever done before. But when the phone rang at 2:30 in the afternoon, I was starting to get a teensy little bit bored...

"Hey Liss... Had enough fun?"

"Actually, I've had a lot of fun today Rose. Natoli is a very different person than the boy we grew up with."

"Natoli, now is it...? What happened to Nat?"

"I don't know, I've got to see a whole other side to him today, a side that tells me that he isn't 'Nat' anymore, he's grown up, he's... Natoli now."

_Huh? _"Okay... if you say so. Um, are we still meeting up at the diner?"

"Yeah, we should be there in just over half an hour. Do you still want to run there or do you want us to come pick you up?"

"No, I'll run... I've had a pretty lazy day so the run will do me good. I'll see you soon."

With that, we hung up and I made my way upstairs to get changed. After admiring my kickass tan that I'd acquired, I pulled on my black and pink training suit; I'd relented to Lissa's constant whining to get it and now it was one of my favourites. They called it a cat suit at the sports shop; its criss-cross strappy back is what sold it for me. Plus, it made me look hot! I grabbed my running shoes and ran down the stairs. I thought I should write a note to Mrs D telling her where we were in case they came home before us, then I pulled my hair up in a messy ponytail and put my shoes on. Within ten minutes of speaking to Liss, I was out the door.

The run over to the diner was good. Recently I'd found that running was a way to clear my mind. I never thought in a million years that I'd ever feel this way about exercise.

"Hey Celeste." I greeted as I walked inside.

"Hi Rose. Lissa's over there." She said as she pointed to a table by the windows. I waved a quick goodbye and as I went to walk over to their table my eyes passed over a familiar face.

Dimitri... But he wasn't alone. The scene before me was almost identical to the one where I'd first laid eyes on him, same booth, same woman... same smiling face, same happy laugh. What shocked me even more was when the woman turned her head – it was Tasha. _I thought he was supposed to have been out of town today._

My stomach fell as I quickly dropped my gaze from what looked like a happy couple. Maybe that's what they were, maybe that's why it felt as if Dimitri was pulling away from me – because he _was_ with Tasha and didn't know how to tell the stupid, naive teenager that her crush wasn't returned. A little piece of my heart broke away at that thought but was soon replaced with the seeds of self mockery. I'd been deluding myself this whole time; Mason was right. He was right in his nightly hauntings, I'd been a fool; I'd put my feelings for him to the back of my mind because I actually thought someone like Dimitri could feel something for me. In that instant, I knew just how dumb I'd been.

I tried to smile when I got to Lissa's table but being the friend she is, she could see something was wrong.

"Are you alright Rose? Did something happen?" _If only she knew the half of it._

"No, I'm fine." I glanced over to Nat hoping that she'd think it was just his presence making me feel uncomfortable and not the 'happy couple' behind us. Apparently it worked.

"I can go if you want a little space Rose, I don't mind." Nat offered.

"No, thanks anyway Nat, I have to work at getting my shit under control." _In more ways than one..._

"Okay, but I'll go if you need me to, I won't take it personally." _Huh..._ "What would you ladies like to drink?" He said as he stood up.

"I'll have a coke and a donut if you don't mind." Lissa said. I seconded that even though I didn't think I could actually eat right at the moment.

"Huh, that was just – weird. You look like you've had a good day." I said.

"I have actually, but it's not weird Rose, Natoli really has grown up a lot since we've last seen him. He's... a great guy. I haven't laughed so much in a long time."

"It's very odd hearing you say 'Natoli' Liss and especially when in the same sentence as the word 'great'."

"Yeah well..." She said shyly. "He was definitely a _Nat_ when we were kids but he's not that annoying little bug he was back then; he's changed, a lot; you should give him a chance."

Before I could ask more about her change of opinion on my less than favourite person, the subject of our conversation walked over with a plate with six donuts of different flavours.

"Dig in girls..." Nat said. Yeah, he seems a little different... _Give him a chance... _We'll see.

Halfway through my first donut, Liss started choking on the bite she had in her mouth. Her eyes were like saucers as she looked over my shoulder. Before I could get up to help her, Nat was there hitting her on the back. As I stood up to go to her, I glanced over to where she was looking to see Dimitri and Tasha standing looking at us...

Dimitri's hand on the small of her back.

"Lissa!" Tasha yelled as she started running over. I quickly glanced at Dimitri before focusing on my choking friend. Liss gave one more cough before dislodging the offending piece of food and then gasped for air.

"Here, have a drink." I said to her while trying to ignore the two extra people at the table.

"Are you alright Liss?" Tasha asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I didn't know you guys were here." She said glancing at me. I looked down while chewing my lip before making my way back to my seat.

"Yeah, we just stopped in here for a coffee before going home. Dimitri rang early this morning to see if I wanted to go out for the day. We ended up shopping in Missoula, fancy that, a guy who's happy to shop."

_He__ rang __her__ this morning? Oh, I see..._ I couldn't help but shake my head in understanding... He was never going out of town... He just didn't want to be near me.

"Yeah, not too many of _them_ around..." she said stiffly. "Just when you think you know someone, they go do something so... _unexpected_. It's a good thing then that he's not one of _those_ men that make you believe that he's a _dependable_ guy only to do a 180 on you and _whip_ the rug right out from underneath you... I _hate _those guys."

I didn't know if I was the only one to hear the double entendre of her words but I wasn't about to look up to see if Dimitri had any reaction to her words.

"That's true, but then again," Tasha said as I saw her move in closer to Dimitri's side. "I've always known Dimitri to be a one in a million."

_Crack! There's another piece of my heart breaking off..._

"Yeah, _that_ he is." Liss said with a little bite!

"Excuse me, I've got to... I'll be right back." I said quickly before darting off to the ladies... My heart thumped as I stood at the sink and looked at myself in the mirror... I had to pull myself together, this was stupid... I'd somehow fooled myself into thinking that he felt the same way I felt about me. If their little display outside didn't show me how stupid I'd been, then I didn't know what would. It had often gone through my mind that someone as great as Dimitri couldn't possibly be alone and I _had_ seen him with Tasha on a number of occasions; he was at her place for lunch, he'd gone to visit her when he'd found me by the lake, amongst other times, he'd even told me their history and how close they were.

How thick was I? Just a stupid teenager with a ton of baggage and an almost stalkerish attachment to one guy... Looking back now I realised that the only time he touched me when not in training was either in comfort or in protection.

"It was all in your mind _stupid_..." I whispered to my reflection in the mirror.

I can take a hint, I'm not _that_ stupid... naive maybe... _definitely_ in light of recent events. I took a deep breath and walked back out to the table.

"Are you alright Rose?" Tasha asked. "You didn't look too well before."

They were still standing where they were before and I had to go around him to get to my seat. "Yup, all good, something just turned my stomach there for a bit, but I'm over it now." His aftershave wafted after me and flooded my senses as I sat down.

Not once did I look at him though.

"Well that's good. Listen, I'm sorry but we really don't have time to chat, Dimitri's taking me out for dinner tonight so I have to get home to get ready, but I'll see you all again soon, alright?"

_Chink... another piece breaks away... Yup, definitely a date..._

"Oh... Okay. Haven't had enough of him yet hey?" Liss said with a funny tone.

"Oh God no..." Tasha gushed as she threaded her arm though his. "I could _never_ get enough of Dimitri." _I really am going to throw up... I need to leave._

"Ah..." I said as I stood up quickly. Everyone's eyes were on me now. "I really need to get going too Liss. I'll see you back at the house." But before I could leave, Tasha reached out to me.

"We can give you a ride home if you're not feeling well Rose." Tasha offered, her hand on my forearm. I nearly laughed...

"No! No, I think the walk will do me good." With that, I pulled my arm out from underneath her hand and walked out of the diner but before I could go too far, _he_ called out from behind me. _God really does hate me... _I rolled my eyes as my lids closed. I stood taking deep breaths as I had to gather myself up before turning and facing him.

"Rose? I need..." He was right behind me. "Are you alright?" He asked as he took a step backwards.

"I'm fine, you don't need to concern yourself with _me_ Dimitri, plus you should be more concerned with keeping your _date_ happy_._" My words were a touch narky and I really didn't want to be _that _sort of person; the clingy girl who has no right to be clingy... I just couldn't help it; my emotions were all over the place.

His eyes narrowed slightly in an effort to reign in what he _was _going to say..."Rose, what happens between her and I is none of your business."

_Ouch! _I looked down as I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth and bit down hard, hoping that pain would drown out the pain in my chest.

"_No... Of course it's not._.." I grumbled under my breath. I took a breath and steeled my heart before speaking again. I tried not to let the hurt show in my voice but even as the words left my lips, I could hear it; I was betting he could too. "Well, I think it's good that you're getting out there – dating. I've often wondered why someone like you wasn't already snatched up."

"Rose..." he said reclaiming that step towards me. There was a pained look in his eyes.

"And you're right," I said as I started to back away from him, "...Tasha's real nice." I looked away and swallowed the lump in my throat. "I need to go."

"Rose..." I had to ignore him, I couldn't let him talk.

"Oh, by the way," I said looking down to the gravel at my feet; I couldn't look him in the eye. "I'm sort of gonna be busy over the next few days, so... I um... won't be seeing you again until Monday night." With that I turned around and started to jog away.

"Rose... please..." He said louder.

I didn't look back.

I waited until I'd turned the corner at the end of the street before wiping the tears from my face. I chastised myself for letting myself get too close to him. What was I thinking? How did I not see this? I needed space from him for a few days. I made the decision to stop the private lessons. I knew what to do now; I could just do it on my own... I didn't need him. I'd keep doing the Monday and Friday night trainings with the girls, but that was it. I was becoming too dependent on him, just like Oksana said I was. I was making him into something he wasn't.

=x=

I'd let silent tears fall as I ran home and then once I stood under the spray of the shower, the floodgates opened. I cried over many things really but I mainly cried over the loss of the only thing that Jesse hadn't taken from me... my self-respect. He'd taken many things from me that night, but I never once thought I'd done anything to deserve it. This was different. A little over half an hour later, Liss and Nat came home.

"Rose." Her voice came from the other side of my bedroom door. "Are you in there?"

"Yeah, you can come in Liss." I was now sitting in the chair by the window, looking over the rose garden. She looked a little apprehensive as she sat on my bed facing me; she'd probably wondered what state she was going to find me in, the whole way home.

"Are you okay?" She asked me.

"Yeah I'm fine." I lied. "It was just getting a little claustrophobic in there; I needed to get out." She watched me while slowly nodding her head.

"Here..." she said as she handed me a little white foam takeout tray. "Natoli didn't want you to miss out on your donut." She explained.

"Well, I'll have to thank him later." I could hear how emotionless my voice was but I just couldn't put any more effort into it.

"That was kind of unexpected hey – at the diner." I knew what she was referring to and it wasn't my speedy retreat.

"Not really. They grew up together, they share the same culture, they're similar ages, they're good friends; stands to reason that they could... be together." I said with my voice cracking a little at the end.

"Yeah, I suppose, I've just never heard or seen anything at her place to indicate that they were anything more than friends. I just thought..." I didn't want to hear what she thought and she must have seen something in my eyes that made her stop that line of conversation. "Anyway, Mom said to let you know that they're bringing Chinese home with them for dinner; they'll be here in about twenty minutes."

"Okay."

"I need a shower, so I'll see you downstairs?" she said.

I could see she wanted to talk about it more but she was a good friend, she knew that I would come to her when and _if_ I wanted to talk. She left with a smile, so I turned back to the open window and let the rose scented air waft over my face.

"Did Liss give you the donuts?" Nat asked me when I made my way downstairs.

"Yeah she did, thanks."

"You're welcome Rose." Looking at him now, I could see that he was being truthful.

"So... looking for a good place to take a girl out huh?"

A smile... he looked good when he smiled. "Well... it always pays to be prepared if such an opportunity arose right."

I nodded slowly. "Anyone special in mind?"

"Maybe, maybe not. What I _should_ do, is practice more, you know the saying..."

"Yeah, I know the saying. I would have thought you'd passed the 'practice' stage a long time ago Nat and been well on your way to completing your Masters in 'Wining & Dining'."

"Oh Rose..." he said while laughing. "I'm glad to see your opinion of me hasn't changed since I've been gone. Plus, it's a little hard to get a Masters in such a difficult subject while trying to get through school in a foreign country with a perfect GPA _and_ doing everything possible to appease a tyrannical father at the same time."

"Tyrannical? Interesting choice of words."

"Only if it wasn't true..." He said with a humourless laugh. Just then the front door opened and in walked Mr & Mrs D followed by the tyrannical T-Rex himself... "Speak of the devil and he shall appear..." Nat said softly before standing up and going over to take the food off Mrs D. I could only imagine what having Viktor for a father would be like... I think I'd rather keep the mother I'd been lumped with than that...

"Thank you Natoli." Mrs D said smiling at him before turning to look at me. "Rose darling are you hungry?"

"A little..." _Not really. _I didn't want to worry her anymore than I already had.

Dinner was – dinner. I spent more time pushing the food around my plate than I actually did eating it. My mind couldn't stop wondered what Dimitri and Tasha were eating now... Chinese, Italian... each other? _Gah!_

"So Natoli," Mrs D said breaking my inner monologue. "Have you started your internship yet?"

"Yes, I started on Monday and went through till Thursday."

"So the company you work for, what do they do? And do you plan on staying in that field?" _Oh thank you for asking Mrs D... _I flicked my eyes over to Nat as saw him quickly glance at his father. Viktor did nothing but raise his eyebrow ever so slightly.

Nat turned back to Mrs D. "Um... I work for Morgoi Industries; they are the only US military weapons design & manufacturer in Montana. I hadn't planned on using my business degree for _this_ particular company," _Was I the only one who heard a slight sting of bitterness in his voice? "..._but I know that there is a lot of room for advancement there so I may end up staying on."

_Weapons manufacturer? Why didn't I know this before... and what did he say last week to the guys about his job? Oh yeah... Viktor wanted to do business with the company and wanted Nat to put in a good word without tipping them off that they're father and son... What on earth is going on? _

"Morgoi? Weapons...? I thought they were some sort of medical laboratory." Mrs D said offhandedly. From my position at the end of the table, I had the unique advantage of being able to see everyone at the table easily. My chewing faltered slightly at that bit of info and I quickly glanced to Lissa at my left to see her turn to look at Nat, Viktor never moved his head from the position he was eating in but his eyes were on his son as well; Mr D glanced to his wife then to Viktor before eating once again. _That was uncomfortable... _

"They have many interests Amy." Viktor replied while putting food on his fork. "Not all weapons are made of metal and even when they are," he turned to look at her, glanced at Nat and then back to her before speaking again. "...sometimes they are more enhanced than what you'd find available to the public."

"Well that sounds interesting."

_You're not wrong there Mrs D... Shit! What are they involved in? _

=x=

Sunday morning came and my alarm blared at 5:30... I closed my eyes and instantly I saw Dimitri – with his hand on _her _back. I opened my eyes and took a deep breath. I felt numb; I knew I was hurt, but it was almost like my body was rebelling against acknowledging it. I suppose sooner or later everything would kick in but for now...

_Do I bother getting up? Yes..._

I got out of bed, quickly brushed away the morning breath, got changed and got myself downstairs. As I ran, no matter how much I tried to think of different things, the diner incident was on replay in my mind... but I was a lot calmer when I got to the lake, well... until I looked at a certain house. Then my mind flew off in directions that I didn't need.

_Was he there right now? Did he stay the night after their romantic dinner? _

I shook my head to get those thoughts and images out of my head. He was a man; a man with needs... And she obviously wanted _him_; of course he stayed!

_Oh shit! Rose, stop it! _I chastised myself.

I turned around and high-tailed it out of the park surrounding the lake. I didn't have a destination in mind, I just ran. When I finally walked through the front door, the look on Lissa's face said it all.

"Sorry I took so long."

"I was worried about you."

"Well don't be." I said abruptly... "I need a shower." I quickly walked past her and up the stairs to my room. I hadn't meant to be so short with her; I was just – _pissed..._ at everything. I was sick of everyone walking on eggshells and looking at me like I was about to crack, like I was weak. Every time I went outside the door, I was timed and if I didn't come back when they thought I should, I got... _'where were you?... I was worried... you could have called...'_ as soon as I walked in the door. I was _sick_ of it.

After coming back downstairs, I didn't feel like talking, I was sick of thinking and shit... I just wanted to... _not _think and to be alone. I walked straight into the games room and put on Christian's vampire game. He'd bought it thinking that Liss would play it with him because of all the vamps, but it was as gory as hell and she hated it and refused to play. I thought it was pretty good actually.

It was just what I needed right now. I sat for the couple of hours shooting the hell out of anything I could. Strangely enough, they all had the same face...and they were all female with long black hair and scarred faces; well in _my_ mind they did. As I played, I mentally kicked Mini me up the ass for being such a hussy and making me go gaga over someone so obviously out of my league. Actions which had made me bite the head off the one person who would never abandon me... My mental flogging made her hide back in the dark corner of my mind...

That afternoon, Lissa dragged me kicking and screaming to the beauty parlour at our local mall. Mia met us there because they both needed their nails redone and she had just got back from her day out with Eddie.

"Come on Rose; imagine how pretty your hands will look with new nails." Liss harped.

"No Liss. You know I've never been into all that shit."

"Well, get something done with your hair then." Mia said.

"Yeah, like blonde highlights..." Lissa said with wide eyes.

"Oh yeah..." Mia gushed. "...or what about bleaching the whole under side of your hair... that looks _so_ cool. I saw a girl with that the other day and it looked _amazing_!"

Between the two of them, I'd probably walk out of here fluorescent pink if I wasn't careful. "I'm not bleaching my hair." I said emphatically.

In the end, I walked out with a few red and blonde streaks and I must admit, I was in a much better mood than when I first got here. Besides, I looked pretty damn good; all courtesy of my father of course. I liked the way I was feeling after the salon, so I did something I've never done before... I went _shopping_!

Liss was so proud of me, Mia was in shock, but I must say that retail therapy is now up there on my new list of favourite things to do. Getting home, all three of us plonked down on Lissa's bed with all of our stash and I was feeling a _little_ bit guilty when I realised just how much I'd bought.

"What's your father going to say?" Mia asked.

"I guess we'll find out sooner or later." I said slightly grimacing.

"I don't think I've ever seen you spend so much money before Rose... You were like a woman possessed. I _liked_ it." Liss said with a devious smile.

"Yeah... should we add it all up?" Mia suggested.

"Oh God no..." But that didn't stop them. They got off the bed and upended all of my bags, spilling out my purchases beside me. One by one they went through my acquisitions. Four pairs of jeans, three shorts, seven shirts, two tank tops, three workout sets, four pairs of shoes; not including the trainers and five lacy bra and panty sets. I was scared to breathe...

"Do you want to know Rose?" Mia asked grinning.

"Does it matter? I'm sure that no matter what my answer, I'm going to be told anyway."

"She knows us well..." Mia said as she laughed with Liss. "Well... it's probably more than you'll be comfortable with..."

"And your father might want to know if you had your card stolen..." Liss added.

_Oh, this was going to be bad..._

"You spent the grand total of $2146..."

"And sixty-five cents..." Added Liss.

I think I stopped breathing...

"Shit..." I whispered. "He's gonna kill me..."

=x=

Monday morning came with a blare of my alarm clock. This was the worst time of my day now, I knew Dimitri wouldn't be waiting for me as soon as I opened the door and that just pissed me off. But I'd made a decision that I wasn't going to let those creeps take any more of my life. Just because I'd deluded myself into believing that _I _could have someone such as Dimitri, didn't mean I could slacken off. So, I pushed myself to get out of bed and I changed into one of my new workout clothes that I'd bought.

I groaned at the thought of the up and coming conversation that I was sure to go through when my father got his credit card bill. Oh well... he had a _lot_ to make up for.

I went on a different route this morning for my run and I found myself heading into the edge of the state forest; I didn't want to go anywhere near the lake. I wasn't real sure if I should go in there; I'd probably get lost knowing my luck, but I did anyway.

Three hours later, I came to a clearing; it was beautiful. I could hear running water not too far away... _water! _

I looked down and smiled... A stream that wound its way through from the trees widened into a pool of sorts. A pool just big enough to swim in... and it was _so hot!_

I toed off my running shoes and socks and stripped down to my sports bra and panties... I was in the middle of nowhere so I didn't feel 'on show'...

"Oh..." I breathed as I made my way into the water, it was wonderfully cool! I leant backwards, dipping my hair into the water and smiled. I don't know how long I was there for, but it was great. After a little fun, I laid back and floated; looking up at the sky above me...

"Rose!" I thought I could hear my name being called but with the water in my ears, I couldn't be sure. Maybe my mind was just...wandering.

"ROSE!" _That was louder..._

I quickly lifted my head up so that I could look around...

"Oh shit... Scare the hell out of me why don't you." I heard as I turned around to see Adrian slowing down to a walk towards me. "I thought you were dead, floating there like that."

"Adrian? What are you...?"

"You've got _everyone_ worried sick and out looking for you and here I find you floating in a... _pool..._ You gave me a heart attack!" I could hear in his voice he was worried but I couldn't deal with that right now... all I could hear was that everyone was out looking for me... _again! _

"Why is everyone out looking for me?" I was getting angry again.

"Do you know what time it is Rose?"

I lifted my arm out of the water and gasped...

"Yeah... you've been gone for what... four... five hours?" he said.

"Sorry." Okay, anger was gone, but irritation was still there.

Adrian's forehead creased as he sat down at the water's edge. "What's wrong Rose?"

"Nothing Adrian." I didn't want to talk about this right now, especially not to Adrian.

"Nat told me what happened at the diner." My mouth dropped open... "He wasn't gossiping Rose, he just came home pissed and it wasn't something I expected after he'd been out with Liss all day, so I asked him what happened. He wouldn't tell me right off; I had to use my 'powers of persuasion' to get him to spill. I could never understand what you saw in that cradle robber, I knew he was up to no good..."

"Adrian... don't. Don't say that. He never did anything wrong. It was all in my head, I can see that now. I just need to get on with my life and hopefully find someone my own age that I can feel comfortable with."

"I'd be happy to lend my services my lady." He said with his panty dropping smirk...

"I'm sure you would be."

"Rose..." he said seriously, "... I know you may not believe this, but you can't always believe the stories you hear. I'm not as bad as you've been led to believe and I'd like you to know that you can lean on me if you'd like. No strings."

I was still doggie paddling in the water so I slowly came forward so that I could put my feet down and touch the ground underneath me. "I guess I could try..."

He sat looking at me for a few seconds before kicking off his shoes and putting his keys and wallet on the ground. Then he made his way into the water.


	20. Dimitri Actions and Reactions Outtake 4

**A/N:** Sorry, sorry... I know I'm late... Well here is the next installment of hearing the thoughts of my Dimitri. I know a lot of you were confused by Dimitri's actions. I hope that you understand him a little better after this.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, you make me smile! I love hearing your thoughts and I'm really happy that you're all enjoying this story so much.  
Talk again soon

Sandy

* * *

**Dimitri – Actions and Reactions – Outtake 4. **

I've never had to use so much self control before in my life. As I laid on the mats, looking up into her eyes, every fibre of my being was telling me to take her into my arms and kiss her like I've never kissed anyone before. My very soul screamed for her. I've been this close to her before; I've even held her before, but I've never had her lay on top of me like this before and it was a sight that I wanted to see more often.

_God I want her._

And that's what scared me the most. I wanted her like I've never wanted anyone else before in my life. I wanted her to belong to _me_, in _every_ way possible, but I couldn't do that. There was the age difference; I know it's not a lot but it's enough, then there's the turmoil that has been her life over the past couple of months... She needs to heal, and I want to be the one to help her do that but I know if I stay in her life as I have been... I _will_ want more; I won't be able to say no to her and she's not ready for that.

But the biggest thing holding me back is _my _past. I'd learned the hard way, not long ago actually, where the path I was currently on could lead me, I couldn't do that again; I wouldn't survive it a second time.

When Lissa started speaking, I was equal parts happy and furious at her interruption. Happy that the bubble we were in was burst and I was stopped from making what could have been the biggest mistake in my life, and furious for stopping me from doing the very thing I've wanted to do since laying my eyes on her in the diner all those weeks ago.

This had to stop. I had to pull back from her; I had to cancel tomorrows training. I knew that I needed time and distance to think about how I was going to take that step back and be the professional I should have been right from the start and I couldn't do that if I had to see her so soon after nearly crossing that line and kissing her with everything in me.

When Avery Lazar came to speak to me at the end of the class, I admittedly used it as a cowardly way of avoiding Rose. As much as I wanted to see her before she left, the memory of what almost happened between us, shook me more than I wanted to admit. I'd been aware of her all night but after she fell on top of me, it was like we'd been joined by some invisible, 'too short' bungy cord that could only stretch so far and whenever she'd move too far away from me, the pull to get closer would increase. It was so hard to keep my distance throughout the rest of the night. My traitorous eyes were in league with the invisible bungy cord and they kept gravitating to where she was; she'd caught me looking at her many times and each time it was harder and harder to look away. I didn't even have to see when she finally walked out the front door; I think I actually felt pain of some sort from her absence...

Driving home, my mind went through a million different thoughts. First came the scenario of me stepping completely out of her life; I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to do that though... Then the image of me kissing her, holding her, making love to her played out... "No..." I said through gritted teeth as my hands clenched the steering wheel. So... I thought about staying _in _her life but just as a friend, but soon the image of her walking towards me in a long, flowing white dress with a smile that matched my own on her face barged its way into my mind. "SHIT!" I growled... After thumping my hand into the wheel a few times, I actually tried to force the image of finding '_someone'_ to take my attention away from Rose, but that didn't last long either before that faceless '_someone'_ morphed into seeing Rose's beautiful toned stomach swollen with our child. My chest tightened painfully at that image.

There was only one other time in my life that I'd even come close to these thoughts and feelings, but even then my dreams never went this far. I pulled into the driveway that had been my home for the last few years and turned the engine off. I knew I had to call her before going into the house; I couldn't have this conversation where anyone could hear. I needed an excuse to cancel training so I ended up telling her that I had to go out of town for the day. I just needed to distance myself and get myself in the right head space before seeing her again.

My heart broke as I heard the confusion in her voice; I hated myself for hurting her this way and she knew that something was wrong. She could probably hear it in my voice, after all, no-one could read me as well as Rose; it was like she was in my head sometimes but I had to do this for her sake, I most certainly wasn't doing it for mine. Later, as I sat staring at the television while my family watched it, Mama brought up the very person I was trying to forget.

"So Dimka, how is Rose's training going?" At her question, my sisters turned to look at me as well.

"She's doing really well Mama. She's a natural." _Now let's get back to the show..._I thought to myself as I looked back to the TV. But I should have known that my mother wouldn't leave it at that.

"I've seen her at the hospital a couple of times but I've been busy and haven't been able to talk to her but every time I see her, she's looking so much more confident."

"Yes, she is..." _Drop it mama...please._

When mama's head tilted to the side and her eyes narrowed, I knew I had to leave the room before she delved too much deeper and I said something I would regret. I swear my mother could have been hired by the KGB as an interrogator; she can make anyone spill their deepest secrets with just one of her looks; the same bloody look she was giving me right now.

"Well, I'm tired; I think I'll head up to bed. Goodnight everyone, goodnight Mama." I said as I bent down to kiss her cheek.

"Goodnight Dimka." My sisters said together.

"Is everything alright son?" Mama asked as she held my face in her hands.

"Yes mama, I'm just tired. I think an early night will do me some good."

"Okay, goodnight darling."

So with a parting pat to my cheek from my mother, I left my family and went upstairs to my room. After stripping off down to my boxers, I laid down on my bed, resting my head on my hands and stared at the ceiling. I was still as confused as I was when I left the studio. I knew it was going to be difficult to pull myself away from her but really... I'd only known her for a few weeks; it shouldn't be too hard, _right?_ With that thought, a growl rumbled through my chest... I knew exactly how hard it was going to be but I had to do it. I don't know what time I actually fell asleep that night; it was long after I'd heard everyone retire for the night, but when I did, it wasn't a restful sleep.

_As normal, I dreamt of Rose... _

"Roza, don't slow down." I said while trying to contain my grin.

"I'm _not_... you're speeding up... _You_ slow down... How do you honestly... think I am capable... of keeping up with you? You're legs are... twice the length of mine." She puffed out as she ran.

"There's nothing wrong... with the length of your legs Roza." _They're perfect just the way they are..._ I added silently

"Maybe not... but that still doesn't change... the fact that I have... to take two steps... to each one of yours."

"Fine, is this better?" I asked slowing down.

"Yes... thank you."

"Thank you... _what_ Roza?" I stopped jogging; forcing her to stop as well and I waited for her to turn around and face me.

"What do you mean – 'what'?" She asked raising her eyebrows in question.

"You said, 'thank you,' I think you forgot something at the end of that statement." I slowly took a step closer to her as my breathing started to slow.

She narrowed her eyes at me as she thought about what I was asking. I saw in her eyes the instant she got it. She quickly licked her lips before a devilish grin adorned her beautiful face but her hands on her hips told me that she was willing to play along.

"Um, thank you..._Dimitri_?" she said looking in the air.

"No." I said as I took another step closer.

"Um... thank you..._spider legs_?" she said looking at my legs.

"No." Another step closer.

"Oh, I've got it... thank you..._Russian Jailer_!" She said looking at my arms.

"No." As I took yet another step closer, she took a small step back but the grin only got more cunning.

"Hmm..." she said tapping her bottom lip with a finger. "...tough one... What could I have possibly forgotten to add on the end of my thank you...?"

"You only have one more try Roza, use it well..."

She lowered her head as she pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth and all I wanted to do was pull it out and suck it into my mouth and see if it tasted as sweet as I thought it did.

"Well...?" I asked impatiently.

"I'm _thinking_... _Oh_, I think I've got it now... Thank you..." keeping her head lowered, but then she looked up at me through her eyelashes with a look that went straight to my groin. "_Master_?" she said almost breathlessly.

"Good answer." I said deeply as I took the one step that separated us.

I put my hands on her shoulders as she lowered her eyes once again but I didn't want that... I wanted to see those deep liquid brown eyes.

"Say it again." I said as I lifted her face with my hand under her chin.

"Master." She whispered seductively. Instantly I bent forward claiming her mouth with mine in a hard kiss. Her reaction to me was instantaneous, her body leant into mine and her hands came up around my body. I wiped the tip of my tongue over her lips and she instantly yielded to me and her mouth opened. The instant our tongues touched, my body was filled with a current that charged my nerve endings like they'd been struck by lightning.

I pulled her in closer but it wasn't enough. I slipped my hands under her arms and wrapped them around her amazing body and then lifted her up off the ground while never taking my mouth off hers. I groaned as I felt her legs wrap around me. My eyes opened as we pulled apart, only to find her looking straight at me with eyes hooded deeply with lust. "Master..." she whispered.

I quickly glanced behind her and found what I was after. Bringing my eyes back to hers, I started to move while kissing her thoroughly again. Soon enough, I was walking us through the door of the gymnasium at the youth centre. As soon as I got inside, I slammed the door closed with my foot and turned us around; pushing her against the wall. She whispered one last time... "I'm yours."

That's all I needed to hear.

I reached up and took her face into my hands as I kissed her hard as my tongue tasted every inch of her hot mouth. Soon my hands moved away from her face... She moaned softly as I felt my way down her sides, gently grazing the sides of her amazing breasts. The grip of her legs tightened around me, pulling us closer together. My body needed to show her just how much an effect she had on it. I pushed my hips hard against hers, knowing what she would feel.

"Oh God..." she said breathlessly as I ran my tongue around the silky skin of her neck.

I smiled at her words..."Oh I'm here Roza, and I intend to show you heaven and _all_ of its wonders."

"Oh yes please..."

_Your wish is my command... _I thought to myself.

I grabbed the hem of her skin tight tank top and pulled it roughly upwards, now was not the time for being nice. The deep caramel mounds at the top of her bra were calling out to me. Dropping my head forward, I dipped my tongue into the cleft between each beautiful mound and slowly licked upwards, memorising her taste as I went.

"You taste so sweet."

I couldn't wait anymore, as I reached around with one hand, Roza arched her back away from the wall, giving me the access I needed to free the prize I had been craving for weeks.

"Beautiful..." I whispered as I ran the tip of one finger slowly down the slope of her right breast. I watched as goosebumps covered her skin and made the malt colored tips of each breast harden as her body reacted to my touch. Looking back up into her deep brown eyes, I saw all the emotion, all the need and desire that I felt for her, being returned to me.

"My master..." she whispered.

_Yes... your master..._

I growled in reply... I needed her now! Quickly clothes were discarded and then we were back against the wall.

"Please... I want you. Make me yours." She said while deeply panting.

So I did...

My eyes opened as I sat upright on my bed panting hard as my heart beat frantically in my chest.

"_URGH! Shit..._ It was just a dream..." I whispered into the dark room. I could almost taste her on my tongue as I licked my lips, imagining her taste upon them, I brought my hands to my face and rubbed at them into my eyes before gripping my hair tightly in my hands. Sweat beaded and ran down the sides of my neck and onto my chest. Even in sleep, she got me hot and bothered...

I swung my legs over the side and onto the cool wooden floor. I needed a shower... for more reasons than one. After my very realistic dream, there was no denying my need; my desire I felt for her, but there was also no denying my feelings for her.

_I'm in love with her. _

She is 'my Roza' and to make matters worse, I know she had feelings for me too. I didn't know how deep, but I know they're there.

Before getting up, I quickly glanced at the clock on the other side of my bed... 4am. There was no use trying to get back to sleep and I knew that all I'd do now was think and I did my best thinking while I trained, so I went out to the shed in the back yard where my exercise equipment was and for the next couple of hours I worked myself into a frenzy.

At a little before six, I walked into the kitchen where my mother and grandmother were now getting everything ready for breakfast. I really wasn't in the mood to answer the questions that I saw on both faces. Mama knew there was something going on last night when I got home from class and I was lucky to escape her questions then... I wondered if I'd be as lucky this morning.

"Morning Mama. Morning Babushka." I greeted as I walked towards safety. "I'd give you both a kiss, but I'm in desperate need for a shower."

"Is everything alright son?"

"Yes Mama." Before she could say anything else, I quickly left the kitchen and made my way up to my room and then to the shower but not before hearing Mama's comment to my grandmother.

"You see what I mean..."

I didn't know what I was going to do with myself today; I couldn't just walk around town after telling Rose I wouldn't be here. The only thing I could think of was Tasha; I didn't know if she already had plans but I thought she might want to spend the day together, maybe go to Missoula, then what I told Roza wouldn't have been a lie.

After getting dressed I went back to my room and called her.

"Hey stranger, shouldn't you be training?" She greeted, I could hear the smile in her voice.

"Not today. Hey, I was wondering if you're doing anything today."

"No I'm not, why? Did you want to do something?"

"Yeah, I was thinking about going into Missoula for a while, what do you think?"

"I'd love to. Did you have something specific in mind?"

"No, not really, is there something that you'd like to do?"

"Well, yeah there is, but I doubt if you'd be interested in it."

"Try me."

"I'm in desperate need for some new clothes. I got rid of a lot of my wardrobe for the move and I'm yet to replace them. I just haven't been in the mood to shop on my own..."

"Sounds good." I couldn't think of anything more mind numbing... just what I needed. "How long before you can be ready?"

"I'll be ready by the time you get here."

I smiled at her eagerness. I felt a little bad actually, I knew from things she'd said over the last couple of years that she was interested in more than friendship, but because of that friendship, I'd always make a comment that was playful yet let her know at the same time that it was never going to happen between us. But still, I knew she'd jump at the chance if I ever showed the slightest bit of interest.

Was it fair to use our friendship like this, to see if I could get over my feelings for Rose by testing the waters with Tasha? No... But I did like Tash, she was an awesome lady and even if nothing happened between us, maybe the implication would be enough and Rose would move on to someone her own age.

I said goodbye and pressed the 'End' button on my phone, then made my way downstairs, this would also be a good excuse to sidestep the 'talk' I knew Mama was waiting to have. God, I was becoming an expert on avoidance lately...

"I won't be needing breakfast Mama." I said poking my head into the kitchen. "I'll be out with Tasha today so you can reach me on my cell if you need me."

"Are you going over now?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure what time I'll be back, I'll let you know. Bye Mama."

"Dimitri, wait..."

"I can't Mama, Tasha's waiting." I felt bad but I couldn't talk about the mess I'd created with Roza. Especially to Mama, she'd been concerned that something would happen if I got too close, and it has. She'd be pissed if she knew how deep my feelings were for Rose and I knew it... I ran out the door and jumped into the car and within 15 minutes, I was pulling up outside Tasha's house.

A couple of hours later we were walking out of shop number six, my arms ladled with enough bags to sink the Titanic.

"How about I go put these in the car and I'll come find you or if you're finished, we can head off and find a nice restaurant for lunch."

"Nah, I'm good. I think my plastic will start crying soon if I don't give them a rest. Lunch sounds great." Tasha said with a smile.

So half an hour later we found a quirky little place that had meals originating from all over the world. I was more than pleased to find Pirozhki on the menu. I had missed my mother's cooking when I was working back in Russia and I'd been lucky to find a little restaurant that made them nearly as good as hers, but I hadn't had any since coming back to America; hopefully they wouldn't be too bad. I smiled when the plate of four golden brown fried buns were put in front of me.

"You look like you've just won the lottery Dimitri." Tasha said giggling.

"Well, that's my hope. I've waited a long time to eat these again, so they'd better be good." I pushed my fork into the first bun and cut it in half. The rich meat filling looked divine; the smell of mushrooms and cabbage made my mouth water. I started to laugh as the flavours filled my mouth...

"By the look on your face, the wait was worth it!" Tasha said.

"Oh God... I think they're even better than Mama's..."

"I'll tell her you said that."

"No you won't..." It was good to laugh and talk about old times. I had a lot in common with Tasha, things were easy with her and as I'd said, I did like her, but was that '_like'_ enough to build a deeper relationship on? Could it turn into more? I needed to find out, so I asked her if she'd like to continue the day and have dinner too. She said yes of course. So after eating, we got into the car and we made our way back home.

"Hey, could you call into the diner up ahead; they have the best coffee in there." Tasha said.

"No problems."

I couldn't believe it when the waitress took us to the same table I'd sat in when I'd first laid eyes on my Roza. Conversation came easily as we sat opposite one another drinking our coffees. Tasha told me all about Christian and how cute he is with Lissa; she was positive that they'd make it as a couple. Some of the things she said made me see what I was going to give up by separating myself from Rose but other things where hilarious and had me laughing out loud.

I didn't think it would get worse than the replaying of my memories of Rose until I looked up to actually see her walking over to a table near the front of the diner. She looked amazing. I saw that she was walking towards a table where Lissa and Dashkov's son were already seated; I hadn't seen them come in...

I wanted to go immediately but I didn't know how to leave without them seeing us. It would _not_ end well if they did.

"Well, if we're going out for dinner, I need to get home to change."

"Sure." I said with a smile. I made sure not to drag my chair on the ground as I stood up and I held my breath as I guided Tasha to the counter to pay. Before the waitress could get to us, we heard what sounded like someone choking. We both turned to see what was going on and I was met with Lissa staring at me. '_Crap'_... Dashkov's son jumped up and started to hit her on the back and that's when Rose turned to look at what had taken Lissa's attention. I could tell she was looking at my hand on Tasha's back and it itched to move away, but maybe this was for the best.

"Lissa!" Tasha yelled before going to help. _Bloody hell! _Rose glanced at me again before helping with her friend. Once Lissa coughed up what had choked her Rose grabbed a drink off the table and gave it to her.

"Are you alright Liss?" Tasha asked when we got to them.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I didn't know you guys were here." She looked quickly at Rose but she was refusing to meet her friend's eyes, I could see Rose was uncomfortable and I felt like the biggest mongrel on earth for making her feel this way.

"Yeah, we just stopped in here for a coffee before going home. Dimitri rang early this morning to see if I wanted to go out for the day. We ended up shopping in Missoula, fancy that, a guy who's happy to shop."

_Oh God... _I saw a flicker of confusion in Lissa's face as she looked to me; obviously Rose had told her my excuse for cancelling training this morning. I saw the look in Lissa's eyes harden before she spoke.

"Yeah, not too many of _them_ around... Just when you think you know someone, they go do something so... _unexpected_. It's a good thing then that he's not one of _those_ men that make you believe that he's a _dependable_ guy only to do a 180 on you and _whip_ the rug right out from underneath you... I _hate _those guys."

Yup, she knew and what she said cut deep. I wasn't one of _those _guys, but here I was... being one of _those _guys... I was trained to keep emotions and surprise from showing on my face, but it was difficult considering the gauntlet of emotions going through me right now.

"That's true, but then again," Tasha said as she moved into my side and wrapped an arm around my waist. "I've always known Dimitri to be a one in a million." I glanced at Tasha from the corner of my eye; I couldn't understand what she was doing, why she was acting like she was.

"Yeah, _that_ he is." I could no longer stop from looking at Rose but I wished I hadn't. The hurt on her face was palpable. I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from telling her that I was doing this for her... My chest felt like it was being crushed from the inside.

"Excuse me, I've got to... I'll be right back." Rose said as she stood up and made her way to the ladies. That bungy cord had been in effect ever since she came into the diner and the pull to follow her was just as strong as it was last night.

"Oh, is she alright? She doesn't look too good." Tasha said concerned.

"She'll be fine, she has moments of weakness sometimes..." the Dashkov kid said while looking straight at me. "But she knows she can depend on her _friends _when it all gets too much, right Liss." By the tone in his voice and the look on his face, I would swear he had feelings for her too.

"Absolutely." I was going to burn in hell for this...

"Should I go see if she's alright in there?" Tasha offered.

"No, she'll be alright." Lissa said.

It was a few minutes before she walked back into the diner. I would have preferred to leave before she came back so that I couldn't hurt her anymore than I already had but Tasha wanted to make sure she was okay. Every nerve ending under my skin buzzed as she walked around me, I desperately wanted to reach out and hold her. Looking into her eyes I could see that they were a little glassy but not red, but what I did see nearly broke my resolve. She looked... hard.

"Are you alright Rose? You didn't look too well before." Tasha asked.

"Yup, all good, something just turned my stomach there for a bit but I'm over it now." She sat down without even a glance in my direction and I knew I'd accomplished what I knew had to happen, but at what cost. The pain in my chest was nearly unbearable and I hated the look on her face. My soul was screaming at me to stop this blasphemy...

"Well that's good. Listen, I'm sorry but we really don't have time to chat, Dimitri's taking me out for dinner tonight so I have to get home to get ready, but I'll see you all again soon, alright?"

_Oh shit... _I felt like shoving a sock in Tasha's mouth when Rose closed her eyes. I hated to think what was going through her mind right now.

"Oh... Okay. Haven't had enough of him yet hey?" Liss said snidely.

"Oh God no... I could never get enough of Dimitri." I couldn't understand why Tasha was saying and acting the way she was... it was almost like she was playing it up for an audience.

"Ah..." Rose said as she stood up quickly. "I really need to get going too Liss. I'll see you back home." I didn't want her to leave, I wanted to take her in my arms and plead for forgiveness, but I had to let her go... the damage had been done.

"We can give you a ride home if you're not feeling well Rose." Tasha said.

_No..._

"No! No, I think the walk will do me good." Rose said with a strained voice before she almost ran out of the door.

"Maybe you should speak to her Dimitri, get her to come with us if she's not feeling well." I wanted nothing more than to take _Rose_ with me and leave Tash and her big mouth behind... but I couldn't.

"I think she'd rather walk." The bug said... _The bug, that's right... Nat! _

"Go Dimitri." Tasha said pushing slightly against my chest.

It didn't take much to convince me really, my self control was hanging by a thread as it was and her telling me to go obliterated that thread. I caught up to her quickly.

"Rose..."

She stopped walking but I didn't. I stopped just behind her and I breathed her scent in deep one last time. A few seconds later she took a deep breath and turned around just as I started to speak.

"Rose? I need..." _I need to say sorry, I need you. _"Are you alright?" I said instead taking a step backwards.

"I'm fine, you don't need to concern yourself with _me_ Dimitri, plus you should be more concerned with keeping your _date_ happy_._"

I knew she was hurt at the implied relationship between Tasha and myself and I didn't blame her really but I'd never seen this side of Rose. The tone in her voice was too childish and petulant for the girl I knew, but then I realised that I didn't know her before she got attacked. It was entirely possible that she was _exactly _this sort of person; and that thought annoyed the hell out of me. And then I remembered, she was only eighteen and a lot had happened to her lately. My emotions were all over the place and I knew I should have shut up but I didn't... I don't know why the next words came out of my mouth.

"Rose, what happens between her and I is none of your business."

I wished for the ground to open up and swallow me whole when I saw the look of hurt that crossed over her face. When she pulled her lip in between her teeth, it took everything in me not to reach over and pull it back out – with my own teeth. _Urgh! Stop it!_

"_No, of course it's not._.." She said quietly. I don't think she meant for me to hear it, but I did. Seeing the hurt on her face was one thing, but to hear it in her voice was even worse. "Well, I think it's good that you're getting out there – dating. I've often wondered why someone like you wasn't already snatched up."

_Oh God... _I couldn't do this anymore, I can't hurt her anymore; I have to tell her...

"Rose..." I said taking a step towards her.

"And you're right... Tasha's real nice." She said as she walked away. "I need to go."

_No... _"Rose..." _Please don't go..._

"Oh, by the way, I'm sort of gonna be busy over the next few days, so... I um... won't be seeing you again until Monday night."

_Are you happy now you selfish prick! _I chided myself.

"Rose... please..." _I love you..._

She didn't look back.

"Oh God, what have I done...?" I said to myself.

I watched her until she went around the corner. It felt like my heart was trying to commit suicide by beating itself against my chest walls... either that or it wanted to go after her. What I had thought was the best last night and today, certainly didn't feel like the best right at the moment. All of a sudden, a feeling of dread washed over me... _I couldn't lose her._

Just then I heard the bell on the door chime behind me indicating that I was no longer alone so I steadied my face before turning around. Tasha, Lissa and Nat were standing just behind me.

"Couldn't convince her to come with us hey?" Tasha asked me.

"No. I think the fresh air will do her good."

If looks could kill, I'd be dead and buried with the look on Lissa's face, Nat's face wasn't much different. I wanted nothing more than to explain myself to them but I couldn't. What's done is done. I made my bed... right?

That night after eating at the local steak house restaurant, I knew I couldn't lead Tasha on, for all of her faults, Tasha was a good woman but I knew that I could never be with her when my heart belonged to Roza.

"I had a great time today _and _tonight Dimitri, I'd love to do it again sometime." Tasha asked when I dropped her off at her house.

"Yeah, it was a good day." _Some of it..._

"It doesn't have to end you know. Do you want to come inside?" She said nodding towards the house.

"Um... I don't think so Tash." I said gently as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Oh okay... You had a good time though, didn't you?"

"Yes but..."

"There doesn't have to be a 'but' Dimitri. You and I have always had a good time together; we know each other so well... We could be so good together, I know we could."

In another life maybe, but not now, I knew that. That very thought had gone through my mind this morning but after the events at the diner, I knew I couldn't. Not only could I no longer deny my feelings for Roza but I couldn't hurt her any more than I already have. The pain in her eyes tore my heart to shreds. I also couldn't lead Tasha on, that wasn't who I was.

"No, I'm sorry Tash, but no. You know I love you, but only as a friend."

"It's Rose, isn't it?" she said looking down to her hands. It shouldn't have surprised me really. "You don't have to say anything; I heard and saw everything that happened at the diner. Why didn't you let her know what was really going on?"

"I can't..." I sighed. "I need to step back. She doesn't need... complications at this point in her life, she needs to heal and maybe find someone her own age."

"Just like you?" I scoffed as I shook my head; Tasha never did know when to give up.

"I think I'm better off being alone _and _better off without those same complications in my line of work."

"Dimitri..." she sighed as she put her hand on my forearm. "You can't close off your heart. What happened back home in Russia was tragic, but you can't blame yourself and you deserve to be happy too."

"Maybe one day Tash..."

"Dimitri, you have to stop blaming yourself, Ivana's death was not your fault."

"Maybe, maybe not, but I let my feelings for her get in the way of my job; I let my guard down and she paid the price. I can't let that happen again, I wouldn't survive it again, especially with Rose..."

"I doubt Rose's father has a price on his head like Ivana's, Dimitri, the situation is totally different. I know how things work back home, Ivana's father made some bad decisions and we all know the person who owes the money isn't the one they go after, their family members make much better payment motivators, I honestly think they would have got to her no matter what. I'm just glad you weren't killed with her."

I needed this conversation to finish before she talked me into going to Rose and pleading for her forgiveness. We said our goodnights and I watched as she let herself into the house before driving off back home. I only hoped Mama would be asleep when I got there, I didn't know if I could stand another dredging up of painful memories...

Sunday morning broke bright and sunny as usual and normally I loved the sun, but this morning it just seemed to mock me. I was anything but bright and sunny. I'd planned on going down to my gym in the back yard but after getting dressed but I found myself walking out the front door instead of the back. I deluded myself in thinking that I had no destination in mind, but deep down I knew better. I pulled my car over to the side of a road in a street around the corner of the Dragomir house; I got out and locked my Jeep. Within minutes I found myself standing behind the large trunk of an old oak tree that stood on the other side of the road to the house. I couldn't help but berate myself for the stalker I'd seemed to become; my self-loathing was cut short when I saw the front door open. There she was...

Adrenaline coursed through my body as my mind fought with my subconscious, Tasha's words from last night constantly played in my mind. It would only take one step in the right direction for her to see me; _three_ words for her to know I was the biggest liar of them all... _'I love you.'_

But I didn't. The masochist in me made my feet stay still; I deserved this pain for what I'd done to her...

I waited until she was far enough ahead of me before following; I knew the route she'd follow. A couple of minutes into her run, she became aware of me behind her somehow. I was lucky to be close enough to a large SUV in a driveway when she turned around to look behind her, so I quickly ducked behind it and watched her through the darkened windows. I saw her eyes narrow as she carefully surveyed the street for any movement; when the old guy came out to get his paper, I hoped it would be enough to make her think that that was where she'd got the feeling. She soon turned around and started running again but I had to wait for the guy to go back inside. If he'd seen me run out from behind the car and follow Rose, he'd probably ring the police fearing I was out to get her...

By the time I made it to the lake, she was already there so I moved into the tree line and watched her just standing there. I followed her line of sight to Tasha's house and by the look on her face; I could imagine what she was thinking – every emotion was plain to see... _How could I have done this to her? _I moved back further into the trees as she took off back through the car park of the lake.

I'd hurt her deeply by my actions or should I say _in_actions at the diner, so I made a vow then and there that I wouldn't hurt her anymore than I already had. I would never say or do anything that would make her think anything other than the truth. If she ever asked about what had happened or my feelings for Tasha, I would tell her the truth.

That said, I now had a new morning ritual. I told myself that I only came here of a morning and followed her on her runs to make sure that she was safe.

But deep down I knew the truth... even if I didn't want to admit it.

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**So, what do you think? Let me know! **


	21. Chapter 16 Standing On My Own Two Feet

Hi Everyone,

Just a quick thank you to Deliciouse... my beta. She's beta'd this twice now... (sorry lol) and I've still added more to it... I won't punish her for a third time... Anyway thanks my dear!

Also a huge thank you to all of you guys, that last chapter was the biggest reviewed one yet, so thank you a million times over! BIG smiles were had! :-)  
I know I told a few of you that Ch 17 was going to be a pivotal one, in terms of the story, and it still is in a lot of ways, but the chapter I will be putting up next isn't the original ch 17... _that's _now chap 18... I had a bit of a brainstorm one night and a new ch 17 was born... It will have a lot of clues in it, (cloaked ones of course) but they needed to be put out there... anyhoo... you'll see what I mean when you read it.

Sorry for the blabbering, on with the story! This is the largest chapter so far, so enjoy!

Sandy

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**16 Standing On My Own Two Feet**

Adrian and I sat around in the little pool of water for a little while, a good ten feet apart; he didn't try to get any closer to me, so that was good.

"So are you going to talk about what's really upsetting you Rose?"

"Not if I don't have to." I looked up to see him staring at me rather intensely and I was going to chide him for it but he wasn't looking at me in _that _way, it was like he was looking inside of me or something... "Do I have something on my face Adrian?"

"No Rose..." he said with a sigh before looking down into the water. "You really need to talk more than you do. If you can't talk to me, then talk to Liss; you know she won't judge you. You guys have been through so much together, you must know that."

"Yeah I do. It's just hard..."

"Why?" He didn't ask this judgementally and for some reason I felt at ease to talk to him.

"I feel stupid. I deluded myself into thinking that..."I looked down into the water in front of me wondering how I was going to explain myself. "I honestly thought..."

"That he returned your feelings?" He finished for me. I looked up to see that there was no judgement in his eyes; he really did only want to help.

"How could I be so wrong Adrian? Did I just see what I wanted to see? Since we met, I've always been so comfortable around him, like I've known him...forever. I've always been able to read him so well, it just seems so odd that I got _this _so wrong; maybe the attack left me more twisted than I realised."

"Listen Rose," Adrian said with a deep sigh. "This is hard for me to say in a lot of ways, but..." His brow creased as he clenched his jaw... he almost looked like he was trying to stop saying something.

"But what?"

Adrian growled softly as he looked up to the sky. "Look... being someone on the outside looking in... from what I saw when I was around the two of you; I would have said that he shared your attraction, but I don't know him, he could just be that sort of guy."

"What sort of guy?"

"A player, you know, string girls along to see who is the easiest."

"That's not Dimitri," I said confidently. "...he's not like that. Anyway, how did you know that it was Dimitri that was bothering me?"

"Oh, when I came over this morning Liss was talking to Christian by the pool. He wanted to know why she was so worried about how long you'd been gone. She didn't say anything direct, but in her own unique way, she asked him about Dimitri's relationship with his aunt." I didn't know if I wanted to know what he'd said...

"And..."

"He said that he'd only come over a couple of times since she'd moved here and that they were good friends." Now I was confused... maybe they'd only just started the relationship and that was why the change in him was so abrupt. My head was starting to hurt as much as my heart.

"Rose, I know you won't want to hear this right now, but... if he's too stupid to see what's right in front of him then he doesn't deserve you. Tasha's a good looking woman and all, but... there's no comparison when you're in the room. He's not the only fish in the sea..." And there was the smirk... I knew it couldn't stay hidden for too long. "Come on, let's head back and put Lissa out of her misery. She's probably in tears right now." He's probably not too far off the mark...

He climbed out of the water and stood back as I followed him.

"I haven't freaked you out too much have I? Being this close...?"

"No, you'd know if you did." I said with a small smile.

"Is it getting any easier?"

"A little." I said shrugging my shoulder.

"Will you be alright in the car with me?"

"Yeah I think so; I'll just sit in the back if you don't mind."

"Fair enough." He said with a genuine smile.

This was not the Adrian I'd grown up with. Here he was talking about Dimitri being a player and he had the biggest player rep around. Well I suppose it takes one to know one, after all, everything I'd thought was there between Dimitri and I was all in my mind, so I obviously didn't know him as well as I'd thought.

I had to try and work on feeling more at ease around other guys. I was only eighteen for shit sake; I couldn't spend the rest of my life caged up because I was scared of guys... I can't make Dimitri _not _have feelings for Tasha; as much as it hurt to think of, all I can do is move forward without him.

I apologised to everyone when I got home for making them worry about me yet again and they all accepted my apology on one condition... I had to promise them that I would never forget to take my cell phone whenever I step foot outside the door.

_Maybe I should just wear one of those ankle things that track my every move... it would be easier._

One thing they were all surprised about was seeing me walk into the house behind Adrian.

"Yeah, I was her chauffeur; she wouldn't sit up front, but at _least_ she got into the car with me." He said with a wink.

After lunch, Liss, Mia and I went upstairs to my room. I had a feeling I was going to be talking whether I liked it or not. I hadn't made my bed this morning and my clothes were still strung all around the room. I quickly went over to the bed and pulled up the sheets and blankets up so that there would be somewhere comfortable to sit while I was interrogated.

"So..." Lissa said seriously as she flopped down and leant against the headboard. This was her way of starting a conversation without actually having to start it; she was queen in this skill set.

"So... what?" I said as I sat beside her. Her head tilted to the left, her eyes narrowed and her lips puckered... Okay, hedging was out. "What do you want me to say Liss? That I'm hurt?"

"And as pissed as hell." Mia grumbled from where she laid on her stomach across the foot of the bed.

"No Rose, I can _see_ that you're hurt – we _all_ can. Why do you feel that you can't talk to us about this? I thought we could talk about anything. Geez, I even told you about my first time I had sex!"

"I know, I do trust you... I just..." I sighed. "I was stupid okay, stupid and naive..."

"Why do you say that?" Mia asked.

"I saw what I wanted to see. I was stupid to think that someone like Dimitri would ever look at me as something other than just a kid, obviously I was wrong. I deluded myself plain and simple. Looking back on it now I can't believe I thought the things I did..."

"I don't understand..." Mia said.

"Well, come on... _Dimitri_? Interested in me?" I scoffed at my stupidity and shook my head. "I'm just a damaged _kid_ with a tonne of baggage, what on earth would make me think that I would be remotely interesting to someone like Dimitri anyway? Mason tried to tell me..." I said, my voice trailing off to a whisper.

I could see my friends turn to look at each other in the corner of my eye. Of _course_ they'd think I was nuts after finally explaining it... I mean, how could they not! Even I saw how nuts I'd been in thinking what I did, so why wouldn't they? Mini me even stood looking at me, nodding slowing in acceptance of the truth.

"What do you mean Mason tried to tell you?" Liss asked.

"Every night..." I said shrugging my shoulders and pulling at a thread on my quilt. "...he tells me over and over. Not in so many words, but thinking back... he's tried to tell me but I just wouldn't listen. Well, now that I believe him, maybe he'll let me sleep..." It was silent for a while as I waited for the next round of questions, but they didn't come. I looked up to see the blank faces of my friends looking back at me.

"Hey, how 'bout we go to a movie tonight?" Mia said. "I know things didn't go real well last time, but being a Monday there shouldn't be too many people, we should be alright?"

"It's training tonight." I said.

"You still want to go?" Liss asked.

"Yeah, I have a lot to learn and the trial shouldn't be too far away I would think, so I want to be as strong as I possibly can be by that time." It was silent for a few seconds and then Liss and Mia looked at each other.

"Alright, well if we're still going then I need to get home." Mia said before standing up from the bed. "I'll be back at the normal time okay?"

"Yup! Come on, we'll walk you out." I said as I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. I knew it would be hard tonight, seeing Dimitri and knowing that things were now different between us but I would go in there and do what needed to be done; I'd learn what I needed to move forward and then I'd come home. Simple! _Yeah... simple..._

Later on as I heard Mia's horn honk from the front of the house, my stomach dropped. Could I do this? Of course I could... _yeah_, I could do this. I was strong and I was independent – sort of... Mini me sat on my bed, shaking her head with her legs crossed underneath her and her arms crossed defiantly over her chest. She did _not _want to go... Well, that's too bad; she was the hussy who started all of this shit, now she had to grow some balls and man the hell up.

As I sat in the backseat of Mia's car, being driven to the one place that I desperately wanted to be and not to be in equal measures, I thought about all the times I'd spent with Dimitri. So many times I swore I could see the feelings in his eyes, in his touch – _how_ could I have been so wrong?

As the car stopped, Mini me was on her knees with her palms pressed together in a silent pleading to turn around and go home, I almost listened to her... I didn't know what would happen in the next hour, but I knew that this was something that I would have to face sooner or later and I was sick and tired of being a weakling... I would face it _now_! I quickly opened the door and got out. The guys were all standing around Andre's car; Adrian had his back against the door with his hands crossed over his chest.

"Hey there, Rosebud." He said with a smirk.

"You like to live dangerously, don't ya Adrian?" I said smiling at his teasing. He knew how much I hated that nickname.

"Only with you _Rosebud_." The others laughed silently around us.

"That's two Adrian, wanna try for a third; wanna see how good I've got at punching?" I knew by the look on his face that the subtle threat I gave had no effect on him, and in some ways I was thankful that he wanted to keep playing with me; it took my mind off who was inside waiting for us.

"Do it Romeo..." Christian dared with a nudge of his elbow in Adrian's side... "I wanna see her punch you. I'll even _pay_ you fifty bucks if you let her kick you too." With that everyone burst out laughing, everyone except Adrian. His grin just got a little bit more evil as he pushed away from the car and started walking backwards towards the door.

"She wouldn't hurt me Christian, she _lur_ves me... Don't ya Rosebud."

I wasn't kidding... he'd called me Rosebud for three times now; he was going to hurt!

I took off running to the cat calls of our friends behind us but he was closer to the door than I was, so he turned and ran inside before I could catch up to him. But _that_ didn't stop me, witnesses be damned!

Adrian was dared; he took it up, now he had to pay the price.

As I stalked my way towards him across the studio floor with my own evil grin firmly in place, he started to chuckle. His eyes darted around until he spied Sydney. Within seconds, he was standing behind her; his hand gripping her shoulders...

"Hiding behind a girl Adrian," I teased, "...while being chased by another? Not very – manly."

"Hmm... when the girl chasing me is you, then yes... I'm hiding behind Sydney because I know you won't hurt _her_." With that Sydney's eyebrows lifted and she turned to look at Adrian over her shoulder.

"You do realise Adrian that I can do as much damage as Rose," She said slyly, "...more actually considering I've been doing this a lot longer than she has."

"You wouldn't?" he said uncertainly.

"Nah, but I _would_ do this..." Before Adrian knew what was happening, Sydney squatted down and darted out to my right.

"Take it like a man Adrian..." I said smirking now he was standing unprotected in front of me. He probably didn't think I'd get close enough to actually punch him so he stood tall, puffed out his chest and turned slightly to the side offering me his left arm.

"I'm all yours... _Rosebud_." He offered with a wink...

I clenched my fist and let it fly... "_OW_! You _hit _me!" He moaned as he furiously rubbed a hand over his shoulder in a dramatic gesture... Even though he whined like a little girl, his face showed only delight; I knew this by the wink he gave me as he walked over to the other guys. As I turned around smiling, I saw that Dimitri was looking straight at me. My smile faltered and it only took a second for my face to mirror his; his face showed nothing but I noticed the clench of his jaw and the hard swallow as he looked away.

"Cheeky bugger..." Liss said as she came to stand beside me. I knew she had meant Adrian because she hadn't been looking at Dimitri.

I quickly looked away from Dimitri. "Yeah... he never knows when to shut his mouth."

"I think he likes you Rose." I rolled my eyes at her preposterous idea and looked over to Adrian... he was still smirking at me and then he mouthed... 'Rosebud' at me. So I held up two of my fingers and mouthed back... _"That's two..."_ I was answered with a loud, over the top laugh. _This_ was the Adrian I'd always known. My attention was diverted by a voice I'd know anywhere.

"Welcome everyone." The voice of my dreams said from up front, but even without looking at him I could tell something was wrong; his voice sounded a little off. "Let's all circle up and start our stretches." I stayed where I was and as normal, I ended up the furtherest away from him in the circle.

For the next five minutes, he led us through the stretching routines and then asked us to partner up to do the triangle yoga pose; yeah, the pose where he draped himself all over me; I flushed at the memory of it. Only this time he pulled Julie out to show the move to the class again. I couldn't help but throw a dagger or two her way as she stood in front of him eagerly waiting for him to do what he did to me last week... I had to look away.

"Come on Rose; let's show him what he's missing..." Liss said beside me, I knew she was only trying to make me feel better but it just made me angrier. Not at her though...

For the next hour, Adrian constantly tried to get a rise out of me, flirting in his own special way; I'd get him back, just not when he was expecting it. Every now and then I'd catch Dimitri looking my way or over to the guys. I also noticed how he worked us harder than normal as the night went on. His ever darkening mood was now eclipsing mine and it hadn't gone unnoticed by every one of my friends. I didn't understand what he was so angry about. If anyone had the right to be angry, it was me!

"Wonder what's eating him tonight? He looks like a big Russian bear with a sore tooth." Adrian said as we picked up our stuff to leave, he even said it loud enough that Dimitri could have heard him...

"Adrian, didn't your mother ever tell you it's not good for your health to piss of the man eating animals?" I said.

"Well yeah... but it's just _so_ much fun to poke them with a big long stick when they're safely behind bars."

"Well, it's got to be lonely all the way up there in the clouds..." Christian said. All I could do was stare at him and hope that his stupid comment was a dumb assed referral to Dimitri's height. It had better have been because I just got madder thinking of another reason for Dimitri's head to be in the clouds. But then I thought, '_nah, if that was the case then he wouldn't have been so angry all night._'

"Maybe it's been a while..." Andre added.

_Not if Tasha had any say in it... _I thought to myself.

"I don't think _that's_ his problem." Nat said snidely. When I glanced over to him, he was staring back at me with an almost apologetic look on his face.

"Mmm, I think you might be right there guys, I think he just wants his cake and be able to eat it too..." Liss said.

"Guys..." I warned. They'd all heard from either Lissa or Nat about what happened in at the diner and none of them were very happy by how Dimitri had handled things. But they were my friends and they all felt the need to protect me. How could I fault them for that?

"I'm just saying..." Nat said.

We all walked towards the door but before I could go through it, he called out to me. I was hoping he wouldn't; I really didn't feel like talking to him right now. I know, childish...

"Rose, can I see you for a minute before you leave please?" Dimitri asked.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Liss whispered beside me. Adrian's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at me, I knew he thought I should tell Dimitri no...

"Thanks Liss, but I won't be long. I'll meet you all out at the cars." After they walked outside, I turned around and walked over to him. There was no better sight than Dimitri in his TKD uniform; the V neck was just begging to be looked down – at least.

"Rose, I wanted to talk about the other day at..."

"No..." I interrupted. "There's no need to explain Dimitri. I get it; I'm not stupid, _naive_ maybe but not stupid. Listen, I really have to go." I needed to leave; I couldn't stand here and listen to him talk about his feelings for Tasha and their relationship. That would just be way too much to handle right now. "I think its best that I train on my own from now on too. I'll still come here on Monday and Friday nights, but I think it's best that I do this on my own from now on." I knew I was repeating myself, but I was too nervous to think of something else to say.

He looked thrown by that, he clenched his jaw and swallowed before answering me... "If that's what you want, but you know that you don't have to. I said that I would help you and I meant it." He told me with a crumpled forehead.

_Could have fooled me... _"Yes I know. I appreciate everything you've done for me but I want to do this on my own now." I said looking down at his perfect feet. _Stop repeating yourself Rose... _He was quiet and I didn't know why so I looked up to see him staring at me.

"Okay, if you change your mind, let me know."

_I won't... _"Is that all?"

"Yes."

"Okay, see you on Friday." With that I walked outside to my friends. I was shocked that that my voice held up so well when my insides felt like they were about to explode, but I couldn't stop myself from looking back at him before completely walking outside.

What I saw only confused me more... Dimitri stood with his hands on his hips, head down, eyes closed and his face crumpled as though he was in pain. He must have realised that he hadn't heard the door shut and he looked up and found me watching him. The look of pain that was in his eyes made me gasp. I couldn't understand why he would look like this, if anything he should be happy. But then he looked away and picked up his things before walking off towards the staff room. I watched him until I couldn't see him anymore and then took a deep breath before finally making my way outside.

"What did he want?" Mia asked as I walked to the cars where everyone stood waiting.

_I'm not entirely sure... _"Just to see what was happening with training." I lied... "I told him that I wanted to train by myself from now on."

"What did he say to that?" Liss asked wearily as she stood wrapped around Christian.

"Nothing much, just that if I changed my mind, to let him know."

Adrian and Nat had similarly unhappy looks on their faces. Liss and Christian said their usual farewells, Andre and Sydney were sharing what they probably thought was an unseen goodnight and I said goodnight to the others at my normal safe distance. The ride home was quiet; I suppose they didn't know what to say really. Maybe a little scared to say something that might upset me and that just made me a little pissier than I was before.

=x=

"_I told you Rose. You should have listened to me..." Mason's smirk was irritating the hell out of me. _

"_Piss off Mason; I thought you cared about me huh! How can you stand there and be so horrible to me?"_

"_Easy." He sneered as he shrugged his shoulder._

"_Leave me alone Mason." I said tiredly. _

"_Oh I will... And now that _he's _gone onto better things, you'll be what you deserve... alone! You forgot about me Rose, now everyone is going to forget you..." _

This is how I woke up on Tuesday morning; his sneering image fading from my mind as the fog of sleep slowly ebbed away. Normally after my Mason dreams, I don't wake so... _non-_violently. I slowly became aware of a strange feeling coursing through my body; the feeling was kind of numb but at the same time I felt as if there was something there slowly gnawing away at my insides.

I opened my eyes to see the sky the same grey as my mood, but I still got up. I pulled on a pair of bike pants and my long sleeve t-shirt and made my way downstairs all while trying to work out what I was feeling. I opened the front door but then I realised I didn't have my phone. I knew that if I didn't take it with me, I'd just have to listen to all kinds of shit when I got back so I ran back upstairs and grabbed it from my bedside table.

"You're more trouble than your worth." I grumbled to my phone once I walked back out into the hallway.

"Have a good run Rose." Nat said from the top of the stairs. I'd only made it half way back down the stairs when he'd appeared. _Man...doesn't he ever sleep?_

"Shit Nat... you scared me!" I snapped at him.

"Sorry..." he said holding his hands up with a smile.

"I've got my phone, so you can let everyone know." I said waving it in the air. "I'll be back in an hour or two."

"Wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning Rose?"

"Something like that..." Just then I realised just how snippy I'd been but I really couldn't find it in me to give a shit.

By the time I got back home, I was in just as bad a mood and I was no more understanding of my internal battle then when I'd left. I still felt – off.

"Would you like something to eat Rose?" Mrs D asked when I walked into the kitchen. She was facing the stove top cooking what looked and smelt like bacon and eggs.

"Ah, no thanks, I was just planning on grabbing some toast or yoghurt Mrs D."

She turned around and finally looked at me. "Okay then, oh, aren't you hot in that dear?" She said indicating to my shirt.

"A little, it was cloudy when I left." I said a little more abruptly than I had intended.

"Are you alright Rose?"

"Yup! Peachy... I'm just going to go have a shower, I'll grab something later."

"Okay then." I could tell she wanted to talk more, but ever the diplomat... she let it ride.

That night, dinner was... weird. Conversation flowed normally most of the time but Liss was more than a little distracted. At one point, I looked up to see her cheeks slightly flushed. I'd seen that happen before so I gathered she was having dirty thoughts or memories of something between her and Christian. _That _was something I didn't want to hear about... Nat seemed rather quiet tonight though. From my vantage point at the end of the table, I didn't miss much, and I didn't miss the looks he was giving his father. It made me wonder what had happened, especially since I'd been downstairs ever since Viktor and Mr D had walked in the door and I knew that they hadn't spoken before dinner was on the table. But trouble in the Dashkov family was something that held no interest for me. Hopefully it meant that they'd be leaving soon. I could only hope. Although, I must admit that I _was_ starting to like Nat more than I ever thought was possible. I'd never admit it to Lissa, but I was starting to believe her when she said that he wasn't the annoying little shit he'd been when we were growing up, it really did seem as though he'd changed since we'd seen him last.

=x=

Wednesday morning I woke up to the same, somewhat desolate feelings that had taken up residence in my chest by the time I'd gone to bed the night before, only now the anger was slightly more assertive than this time yesterday. I once again went through my normal morning ritual and opened the front door to once again run on my own but as I opened it, someone spoke softly behind me.

"Want some company?"

I turned around to see Adrian standing on the second bottom step.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"Andre and I stayed up late playing Mortal Combat and I couldn't be bothered going home. So... you haven't answered my question."

"Sure." I said flatly, shrugging my shoulders; I really couldn't care less if he came or not. "If you think you can keep up."

"I'll give anything a go once or twice." I could see that he was trying to be funny.

"That you do..."

We hadn't been running for all that long when I found that I'd missed running with someone else but then just as quickly it made me realise it wasn't Adrian I wished I was running with. I missed Dimitri. I missed our camaraderie; I missed how he'd push me to go faster, go better. Suddenly I doubted if I could do this without him and that's when my anger spiked.

"Are you normally so angry when you run Rose?"

I turned to look at Adrian running beside me and when he lifted his hand to point to my forehead, I realised that it was all scrunched up. I slowed down to a walk but kept looking forward. I could hear Adrian puffing beside me.

"Just got a lot on my mind Adrian."

"I can see that. You shouldn't be thinking about him so much Rose, he's not worth..."

"Adrian... If all you came with me for was to put Dimitri down, then you may as well not have even come. He's done nothing wrong..." _except break my heart... _"...he's a good man, please don't."

He looked down as he put his hands up in surrender. "I'm just saying..."

"And I'm saying... leave it alone. Are you finished? Because I'm pretty sure that I can run faster than you."

With that he started smiling... "You can run Rose, but I've done my fair share of chasing..."

"I'm well aware of your... conquests." When his eyebrows lifted up in question, I just turned around and started running again, I didn't want to get into anything this morning, I really wasn't in the mood. No matter how hard I tried to think of other things, my thoughts always came back to Dimitri...

He _promised_ me... He told me he'd _be_ there for me, to help me regain my _life_. _How_ could I move forward from him when I _needed_ him to move forward? By the time we rounded the corner of our street, my chest felt like it was going to crack open. But from now on, I had to be strong... I had a lot to face in the coming months with the trial and all, and if I had to hide what I was really feeling behind a mask of stoicism, then that's what I'd have to do...

When we got home, Liss was out; apparently she was at Mr D's office talking about college. I thought that was a bit odd really, I couldn't see why she couldn't talk to him about it when he got home.

When she finally did get home, she was off with the fairies... _and _she was biting her nails. I can't remember the last time I'd seen her bite her nails. When I asked her what was wrong, she made some excuse about not being sure of her college choice or even if she wanted to start this year as she'd originally planned. I didn't really believe her but after all the space that she'd given me over the last few weeks; I decided to return the favour. I knew she'd come to me when she'd worked everything out in her head.

=x=

Thursday morning couldn't come around soon enough. More dreams, more anger. After my run, I got ready to see Oksana; I really needed to talk to her today.

"What's wrong Rose?" She asked me, immediately picking up on my mood.

I shrugged my shoulders as I sat picking at my fingernails.

"We can't work anything out if you don't talk about what's upsetting you."

"What if I don't want to talk?" I could hear how petulant I sounded but over the last couple of days, whatever was eating at my insides, was severely pissing me off.

"You don't have to, but after all of our talks I was pretty sure that you realised how much better you feel when you do open up. This isn't any different."

I sat chewing the inside of my cheeks, mulling over what she said. She was right, I did feel better talking about things but I knew she'd see how stupid I'd been too... "I don't know what to do..." I spent the next half an hour telling her what had happened since I'd seen her last and the revelation I'd had when running with Adrian the day before.

"I'm sorry you're feeling so lost Rose, but I'm sure you remember the talk we had last week." _Yeah, I remembered..._ She was referring to the talk we had where by me putting Dimitri up on a pedestal like I did, I was only setting him up to fall... "This is what I was afraid of Rose. That said, I think it was good that you took it upon yourself to train on your own. I think it's a good thing that you're getting a chance to stand on your own two feet for a while. Also, in time you'll come to see this in a more positive light." _I don't think so... _"Dimitri gave you the skills to do this; it'll only make you stronger."

By the end of the session, she almost had me convinced that I _could_ move forward without him... almost. The anger was still there though. Mrs D looked up as I walked out of the doc's office and smiled. She was so patient, why couldn't my mother be like her?

"Are you sure everything is okay Rose?" Mrs D said as we walked out of the lift and into the foyer of the hospital. Up until now, I'd been able to deflect her concerned looks at home, but now it was just the two of us and I couldn't get away.

"Yeah, I'm alright Mrs D... It's just been a bad week."

"I know you have your friends and Dr Markov to talk to, but you know I'm here for you too, don't you?"

"Yeah, I know. I'm just the sort of person who prefers to try and work things out on my own first. Product of my upbringing I suppose, but thanks."

"Okay, you're welcome sweetie, but the offer still stands."

"Rose!" I turned around to see Olena slowly jogging towards us.

"Hi Olena." I said as she reached us.

"Hi darling." She said as she kissed my cheek. "Amy, how are you?"

"I'm good; it's good to see you again." Mrs D said.

"I was just wondering how you're going, I haven't seen you for a while."

"I'm alright." _I swear if one more person asks me how I am, I'm going to punch them! _

"Are you in a hurry to be somewhere? I was just wondering if I could have a chat." Olena asked.

As I looked to Mrs D hoping she'd come to my rescue but she said that she had to go get a few things from the shops anyway and could come get me in an hour if I'd like to stay. It was strange really, I'd missed the feelings of ease that I got around Dimitri's mother, but at the same time, she was too close to the source of my pain. I knew I couldn't say no without hurting her feelings and that was something I just couldn't do. I nodded and said that I'd just wait in the garden at the front of the hospital until she got back. After a quick goodbye to Mrs D, Olena led me to the cafeteria where we grabbed a drink each and I grabbed my morning sugar hit in the form of a chocolate mud cake donut.

"I'm happy to see you are still seeing Oksana, she's a wonderful woman." Olena said.

"Yes, she is. She's helped me a lot."

"That's good..." she said nodding. I could tell she had something else on her mind, so I told her to just ask... "Has something happened Rose... between you and my son?"

_Whoa! Gees, she doesn't beat around the bush..._

"Um... what do you mean?" I said before quickly taking a big gulp of my 7-Up...

"Well, to be honest, for the last week my son... my son has not been himself and every day after he gets back from training he just seems to get worse."

"Training?"_ What the hell? _"Um... I wouldn't know anything about that Olena. We don't train together anymore; other than Monday and Friday nights."

"Oh really? He goes out every morning still... Did you have a fight?"

"Fight? No, I just..." _I just what? _"I just needed to stop leaning on him so much."

She nodded again as she digested what I had told her, but by the look in her eyes, she wasn't all that convinced. "So that's all, he didn't do or say anything to hurt you did he?"

_Not physically... _

"No." Her eyes narrowed in the way that mothers do when they're trying to work out if they're being lied to or not. I had a feeling that Olena was a more intuitive mother than I was used to dealing with. She wasn't saying anything, just staring... and I felt a need to defend Dimitri. "He would never do anything intentionally to hurt me..." I blurted out. She nodded her head very slowly again but still said nothing. "But he's got his own life to live, so it's better this way." The look and the silence was more than a little unnerving...

"Interesting choice of words Rose – _intentionally..." _She picked up her bottle of OJ and took a sip before speaking again. "Dimka has always had a very strong sense of right and wrong, at least what he considers right and wrong. As a child, he would often take matters into his own hands; sometimes making decisions for others even if it made his life more difficult."

Yeah, that sounds like something he'd do...

"So what did he do this time?"

_Crap she's good... what do I say?_

"Nothing, he did nothing." I wasn't lying really. He never made towards me, never promised me anything other than friendship, it was all me... I was the one who saw something that wasn't there.

"Well, that's good to know. How are you doing otherwise?" She asked. I leapt at the chance to steer the conversation away from Dimitri. We sat and talked about all sorts of things and by the time she had to go back to work, I was sad to say goodbye. In a way, I felt a kinship with her that I didn't feel with either Mrs D or even my own mother.

=x=

Friday morning rolled around and the house was soon invaded by males. The feeling that normally came with being surrounded by so many men was still there, maybe not as bad as just after the attack, but it was still enough for their presence to fan the flames of irritation and antagonism that had been on a slow but steady rise for the last week; but I did my level best to push that aside.

Liss seemed a lot better today than she'd been since Tuesday; much more open. Something had definitely been weighing on her mind and I'd actually wondered if she was starting to get sick of having me under her nose so much. She said she wanted to work on her tan some more so we soon found ourselves out by the pool. No-one said anything when I pulled my sun lounge over to the shade of a tree. I think they all knew I just needed a little space. We'd all been out by the pool for a couple of hours when I realised it was after lunch so I went inside to get something to eat and drink. As I made my way back to the poolside, I heard Christian talking to Liss.

"Hey, guess what?"

"I don't know... you love me?" Liss said sweetly.

"Well yes, I do... but that's not..." he let out a growl before continuing. "Aunt Tasha told me last night that she's going to be teaching the class tonight. Apparently Dimitri has to work so he asked her to take over for the night."

"You're kidding?"

"No, do you think we should let Rose know?"

"Yeah, I'll tell her once she comes back."

_Oh Crap! _It was hard enough to drag my sorry butt to training on Monday night; I couldn't deal with Tasha's happy, smiley, in love face too. I could always just feign sickness or a headache. I quickly turned around and went up to my room, if I was going to feign anything, I had to make it seem as though I hadn't heard them talking.

I laid down on my bed and turned to face the window. It wasn't long before a knock sounded against my bedroom door.

"Rose?"

"Come in Liss..."

"What ya doin' up here?" She said as the door pushed open and she walked over to sit on the bed beside me.

"Got a headache, I think I've had too much sun lately."

"Oh, okay. Do you need a couple of aspirin's?"

"Nah, I've already taken them. Hopefully it'll be gone before training." _Yeah, that sounded good! _

"Yeah, hopefully. Well, text me if you need anything okay, and I'll be right up." She said with a nod towards my cell.

"I will." Once she left, I wondered why she hadn't told me about Tasha taking the class. Maybe she was thinking that if we didn't end up going, then she wouldn't have to tell me at all. I ended up falling asleep and when I finally did wake up, I found that not only was well after dinner time, but class had already started too.

My chest felt like an elephant was sitting on it as I thought about the fact that this had been the longest that I hadn't seen or spoken to Dimitri since meeting him, and I hated it. The following two days of the weekend were even worse. Even though the feelings of anger were still there, the feeling that haunted me the most now could only be described as... abandonment. I couldn't even be bothered going to run on Sunday morning. All I could think about was Dimitri, and the more I thought, the more I knew that I needed him. It was like the longer his presence was absent, the more my soul cried for him...

It was like... he was the other half of me...

That's when I knew...

"I'm in love with him..."


	22. Chapter 17 Oh, The Tales We Weave

Howdy! Are you all surprised? This is the new chapter 17... the one I've been dying to upload. I'm going away for a few days, so I thought I'd give you this one early!

It has a lot of clues, (shrouded in mystery of course) LOL I wonder how many of you will pick them up... This chapter is in three different POV's some we haven't heard from before (& I really hadn't intended to) but things needed to come out, so...

Now... You guys are just the ants pants! The reviews some of you guys are sending me are out of this world... You are just the best! So thank you.

Deliciouse, brilliant as always, but I've been naughty again... I've added more to what you beta'd... (So any mistakes are all mine...) Anyway, I hope you enjoy it and don't forget to let me know what you think.

Sandy

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**17. Oh, The Tales We Weave.**

Multiple Points of View of Tuesday, 29th July.

**Dimitri's POV**

When my alarm blared at 5:30 this morning, I opened my eyes in the foulest mood I'd been in for quite some time, and it looked like today was going to mirror my mood... The grey overcast sky was rather fitting I suppose, considering what happened last night; last night's class was... fucked, and it was still eating at me. I got up and quickly changed into my workout gear. Fifteen minutes later I was standing, behind the tree again. When she came outside, my heart clenched. Even from this distance I could see the dark circles under her eyes and she had that damned hooded T-shirt back on again... it hadn't come out in a long time and I knew that even though this morning was miserable, its reappearance was because of me.

If she felt as if she was being followed like she did the other day, then she didn't show it. I ran a good distance from her, sticking close to object so that I could duck behind them if I had to, all while the events of last night did re-runs in my brain.

_The ache in my chest lightened when I heard her laugh at the start of the class, but then I realised it wasn't me who made her do it and I had to reign in my inner thug before he made me do something I'd regret. When she told me that she didn't want to train with me anymore, I was crushed, I don't know how I was able to keep my composure in front of her but I did. I kept waiting for her to smile and say that she wasn't serious, but she didn't. I was thankful when she finally turned to leave; I didn't know how much longer I could keep it together. When I heard the door open, I crumpled... Losing her had hurt much, much more than I expected it to. I don't know how long it took me to realise I hadn't heard the door close and I knew what I'd see when I looked up, but I'd already let the mask fall from my face and I just couldn't put it back on... she'd see. And she did._

So many times on the run this morning I wanted to call out to her to explain my abhorrent behaviour, but I didn't. I breathed easy when I watched her walk through the front door of the Dragomir residence. Normally running enabled me to clear my mind; this morning had no such effect. By the time _I_ got back home, showered and made my way to work, my mood was stormy.

"Get out of the wrong side of the bed this morning Belikov?" Janine asked.

"Something like that." I replied as I perused my client roster for the week. I saw that she'd booked me in for Friday night and I almost told her I couldn't work it, but last night's fiasco was still so fresh in my mind and I thought not seeing her on Friday would be for the best.

"I'm sorry about Friday night Dimitri," Janine said, "...there was nothing I could do to change it; have I given you enough warning?"

"Yes, thank you Janine. I'll make other arrangements."

With that I walked out of the office and made my way over to the car where my partner waited.

=x=

"Mr Dashkov." I greeted him as he walked to the car.

"Mr Belikov, big day today."

"Yes sir." I had no idea what he meant but I was guessing that I would soon find out. Janine had me booked all week with different clients but today was twelve hours of a man that made my skin crawl. Another thing that was odd was that I was picking him up from another house, not where Rose lived, nor the hotel where I initially picked him up from. Once we were in the car, Mr Dashkov gave us instructions on where to go for our first stop.

I was ordered to stay in the car with the damned briefcase again while Mikhail accompanied him into the meeting; I'd often wondered what was so important that the contents of this case needed its own bodyguard. All of six minutes later I heard Mikhail call me inside through my earpiece. The building was low set, so I knew I wouldn't be too hard to locate everyone. Walking into the reception area, the woman behind the desk immediately pointed to a hall to my left. The building was very modern, very sparse; white floor and walls, black furnishings. The thing that surprised me the most were the splattering of a few Middle Eastern art and knick knacks around the place. I saw Mikhail standing in a doorway at the end of the hall and when I entered, my eyes did their usual quick scan of the area.

"Ah, here he is." Dashkov said as he held his hand out for the briefcase. He took it from me and then pulled out a series of what looked to be contracts. "You'll find everything in order Ibrahim."

"I'm sure I will Viktor." Looking at this _Ibrahim's_ face I got the distinct impression that he was one man _not _to be messed around with. The power in his voice and demeanour was unmistakable. I now knew where the Middle Eastern influence came from. With eyes as close to black as his hair; he certainly pulled off the 'Mafia' look – complete with gold earring and flashy, yet expensive attire. I heard the touch of an accent in his voice but he hadn't said enough for me to put my finger on where he was from. I watched him quickly scan the document and then as he signed his name along the bottom, he continued speaking. "The transfer should take no longer than twenty four hours."

"That'll be fine." Viktor leant forward and grabbed the documents before putting them back into his briefcase, locking it and handed it back to me. "So, how's your daughter, getting better?" Ibrahim's face hardened at the question and he took a deep breath before answering.

"Things could be definitely worse, but we'll get through it."

"I'm sure you will. Will she be joining you in the family business soon?" A calculating smirk pulled at his lips.

"I'm sure in time, she will."

"That's good to hear, you must be proud."

"I am. Kiz is strong and tough as nails like her mother and won't take anyone's bullshit like me; how could she go wrong." I couldn't work out if these two actually liked each other or not; by the conversation and the looks on their faces they almost looked like two caged lions circling each other. I personally couldn't work out why Dashkov would be so interested in this man's daughter.

"Well, I'm sorry we can't catch up some more but we really need to be going. I hope to do business with you again soon."

"Of course. When do you think this will all be finalised?"

"The majority of it will be done by the end of the day but there is still... _one_ part of the puzzle that that may take a couple more weeks at the most to complete."

"Well, good luck with that, I'm sure you'll make it happen." He said standing up. I was surprised to see how tall this Ibrahim was, he was only maybe an inch or two short than me. After hearing him talk more and observing his dark features, I concluded that he was probably from Turkey, I could have been wrong, but I didn't think so. "It was a pleasure doing business with you again Viktor."

"Likewise Ibrahim, as always. Allah'a ısmarladık"

"Güle güle."

With a shake of hands, we were out the door and getting back into the car. When I got back into the car beside Mikhail, his tense posture and facial features had me a little more than concerned. I wasn't there for the beginning of the meeting and I'd obviously missed whatever had gone down. I couldn't ask him what went on as Dashkov sat all of three feet behind us.

Next port of call was the office of Lissa's father, Eric. This time it was Mikhail that stayed in the car.

"I'll take the briefcase now." Dashkov said holding his hand out to me as we stopped at the door with Eric's name on it. After handing it over he turned around and walked inside. "Just wait out here, I shouldn't be too long. If you need a bathroom stop, I'd suggest you go now, it may be a while before you get another chance." With that he shut and locked the door behind him.

I took him up on the offer after telling Mikhail to do the same thing and then resumed my post by the door of the office. An hour later, Dashkov and Lissa's father exited the office and walked towards the front door.

"Will you be back this afternoon sir?" The receptionist asked Mr Dragomir.

"I'm not sure Jean; I'll call you before closing time if I am."

"Yes sir." I quickly opened the door for them and walked outside first, checking the streets. Another address and thirty minutes later we pulled up outside Morgoi Industries. Knowing the places that we'd been to over the last couple of weeks and now a weapons manufacturer, the hairs were standing up on the back of my neck.

"I'll need you to stick close to my partner here for this meeting." Dashkov said to Mikhail as we got out of the car.

"Yes sir." I gave a quick glance to my partner and saw his look of confusion mirrored my own.

"Is there a reason for this extra security Mr Dashkov? Are you expecting trouble?" I asked, feeling a little unsure of the situation we were about to walk into.

"Probably not, but it doesn't hurt to be proactive now does it."

_Hmm..._

The ride in the lift was quiet and a few minutes later we were all ushered into a large boardroom full of people, including none other than Dashkov's son, Nat. To say I was surprised to see him here was an understatement. His eyes narrowed as they settled on me but he made no other sign of acknowledgment to me or my two clients. The room was quite masculine with heavy use of timber all around. The many framed photos of different weaponry on the walls just finished the look. I also saw that the room was set up for what I expected to be a movie or slide show presentation; a large screen had been pulled down the wall at one end of the room.

Seeing that there were no other doors around the room other than the ones we'd just walked through, I gave a quick nod to Mikhail and he quickly took up position by said door, while I stood behind Viktor.

"Mr Dashkov, a pleasure to meet you finally." A tall, pale old guy stood up out of his chair and held his hand out in greeting. He looked ancient but his cold eyes belied what I would expect to be a cold and ruthless man.

"Mr Moroi, thank you for meeting at such short notice." Dashkov said. From the name I realised this man was one of the founders of Morgoi Industries. His partner, Richard Goines had died a few years back with no heirs to leave his shares to, so Nathan Moroi took complete control. "I'm aware that you know my partner, Eric Dragomir."

_Partner?_

"Yes, how are you Eric, it's been a long time." Moroi said with a handshake.

"It has Nathan, too long; it's good to see you again."

"Should these two leave do you think?" Moroi asked Dashkov, indicating Mikhail and myself.

"No, they're fine." Dashkov said while turning to look at me. The look in his eye was unmistakable; I'd seen it before in the eyes of Ivana's father back in Russia and hopefully history wouldn't repeat itself, but the longer this day went on, the worse the feeling of dread pooled in the bottom of my stomach. That second of eye contact between him and I, told me that I was never to repeat what went on in this room.

After the pleasantries, introductions and initial outline of what was going to happen was completed, a slide show started up from the projector that was attached to the roof. I'd never known what Lissa's father did for a living, but it soon became glaringly obvious. He owned Dragon Medical Laboratories, well known for being leaders in experimental drug formulation and experimentation. I'd heard through my mother working at the hospital that they were responsible for the manufacturer of some remarkable new drugs. The company's name seemed synonymous with the business of healing, but from today, I also learnt that they seemed to be branching out into medical weaponry.

**Later after meeting...**

**Nat's POV**

"Your bodyguard could be a problem dad."

"What do mean?" My father said narrowing his eyes. I'd got his attention just before the meeting finished; he knew by the look on my face that I needed to speak to him. I made my excuses, left the room and then walked as slowly as I could down the hall. When I heard the boardroom door open behind me, I turned to look over my shoulder and saw my father walk out on his own. I turned away from him knowing he'd follow and I led him into an empty office.

"Your bodyguard is the guy who's been training Rose." I said as soon as the door shut.

"Rosemarie?"

"Yeah, he knows me. What do I say if he asks me about today?"

My father screwed up his face and scratched behind his neck as he walked around the small room. After a few minutes of thought, he stopped pacing and turned to face me.

"Just remind him that what went on in that room is confidential. But enough of that, how is your end going, any advancement?" He asked, smoothly changing subjects.

"Not as much as I know you'd like. I honestly don't see it happening father, I think you're expectations in this are a little ambitious."

"Really? Well I guess I'm lucky that you're not running this show then hey. You have two weeks, work harder."

"Dad..."

"No Natoli, this isn't up for discussion. Two weeks, make it happen or I will. You knew what the objective was before returning from Europe, I offered you a choice back then and you chose this. You've dragged your heals when you should have been doing what you promised, and don't think I don't know the reasons behind your – _reluctance_ either. Keep your eyes on the objective; I expect results in two weeks."

He walked to the door to leave, but before he did, he turned around and faced me. "Oh...Natoli, arrangements can always be made for the _other _offered choice to resume if you don't feel up to this task." And with that, he walked out.

_PRICK! _"Yeah..." I hissed through clenched teeth. "Two weeks, I'll need a fuckin' miracle. _FUCK!_"

There was only one way he'd know the reason behind my '_reluctance'_ as he calls it... and that would be through my sister, Natalie. My conversation with her early the other morning in Eric's office had been the only time I'd really confirmed to her of my true feelings. I knew I shouldn't have trusted her with such information, but I really didn't think she'd sell me out; she was my twin after all... _Who was I kidding... of course she would, she's daddy's friggin lapdog._

I walked out of the office and made my way back to my department. I had no idea how I was going to pull it off but I had to make it happen somehow, the alternative wasn't particularly appealing even if the end result was going to be the same. I'd rather this come together freely instead of being forced, but I can't see the current situation changing anytime soon.

**Viktor's POV**

Today was a good day, despite my son's revelation about my bodyguard and _his_ failure so far to accomplish what I've asked him to do, but having secured the financial side of things with Mazur, it was all coming together nicely. When I thought of my conversation with him, a backup plan formulated in my mind in case my original objective couldn't be procured.

Eric had recommended the security company that Rose's mother ran because it had the reputation of the best bodyguards around. Hopefully that reputation was correct; the man mountain in the front seat had certainly been exemplary up to this point.

"Are you coming back home tonight Viktor?" Eric asked after calling his offices to say that we were on our way back.

"Yes, if that's still alright."

"Certainly. How did it go last night?"

"Good, but I'm not sure I'll need for the deal to go through after all."

"Oh, alright." I could tell that he wasn't sure what I meant by this, but he didn't know what deal I was talking about. When I rang him yesterday to say that I wouldn't return to his house because of a meeting I was having to procure some more financial backing, it wasn't a lie as such, it was just not the type of financial backing _he_ was thinking of. The deal I went there for was of a more – _personal_ matter. But what was on offer, wasn't going to fulfil my needs, the original plan was still my best option and it made me less than happy to know I had to rely on my son to get the job done. But now I had another 'plan B'... Hopefully I wouldn't have to use it, hopefully he took my threat seriously and would go about doing what he knew had to be done.

Two weeks... I'd give him one. If I didn't see any large improvement by then, I'd have to start the ball rolling from my end, maybe implement 'plan B'. But by the end of two weeks, I had to procure the deal, it was imperative.

**Later Tuesday night**

**Nat's POV**

I looked up when I heard the door open, knowing who it would be. Mr D walked inside first and then my eyes met my father's for an instant. Just then Rose came down from her bedroom where she'd been since I'd come home from work.

"Dinner's ready darling," Mrs D said as she greeted her husband in the foyer. "Why don't you two go wash up quickly and by the time you return, I'll have it all ready."

"Will do sweetheart."

"Yes, thank you Amy." My father said sickly sweet.

"No problems." With a quick kiss, she and her husband parted company and went in opposite directions. "Would you mind giving me a hand in the kitchen, Rose?"

"Sure Mrs D." Rose said.

My father didn't linger before following Mr D, but he didn't need to, the look in his eyes said volumes.

"What's wrong Natoli?" Lissa asked beside me. Since coming home we'd spent our time watching one of her favourite movies. It got my mind of things for a while I suppose but Bill Nighy's portrayal of the overbearing father figure in Underworld reminded me too much of my own, it only stood to reason that they'd share the same bloody name. My father would make the perfect evil vampire, blood sucking prick he is.

"You don't want to worry about my problems Liss."

"Yes I do." She said as she moved closer and put her hand on my forearm. "Is it your father?"

"Yeah." I snorted, looking down to my lap. "Overbearing as usual, barking out orders..."

"Can't you just tell him to take a hike?"

I couldn't help the humourless chuckle that left my mouth... "Yeah, _that'd _work." I said dryly. "Having you here to listen to me helps though, thanks Liss, you're a good friend. It's times like this that I regret going overseas."

"Why?" She asked curiously.

"I just see how you and Rose have grown up, the type of women you've both grown into; I just wish I'd been able to stick around to see it happen. I especially would have liked to know Rose before all this crap happened, but she's – _amazing_. Her strength is nothing short of miraculous really."

"Yeah, she is amazing," she said with a soft smile. "...and she'll be even better with her friends around to help her get back to the person she used to be. I know it's hard for you guys, you know, her keeping you all at arm's length, but don't pull away from her. You being here, around her... it helps, I know it does. She's come so far since the attack," my jaw clenched involuntarily, "...and in time, I know she'll see you for the man you've become and not the antagonistic boy she remembers."

"Yeah..." I smiled, "... I used to give her a hard time hey."

"Just a little, but I knew you were just trying to get her attention."

"You're wonderful too Liss, I mean it." I said as I looked up at her. "You have such a calming spirit; there are times... like this, where I feel drawn to you. That sounds _so _corny..." I said as I screwed up my face a bit.

"No it doesn't, I'm glad that I can help you feel better Natoli and... sometimes I wonder how different our lives would have worked out had you stuck around too." I was a little confused by not only her words but the look in her eyes. My heart stopped when I saw her lean forward slightly... _Should I? _Why the hell not...

Being as close as we were, I didn't have to move much to close the distance between us, but I stopped a hairs breath away from her. The warmth of her breath against my lips made my resolve for her to make the final move, waver. I was lost as I stared into her jade green eyes; I was almost in a trance. I came back to myself as I felt the soft touch of her lips against my own. I returned it carefully as my heart sped up. I lifted my right hand and cupped it against her jaw; the tips of my fingers sliding into her soft platinum blonde hair just behind her ear as I pressed a little harder against her mouth. The kiss was soft and gentle yet one of the deepest I'd ever shared...

Holy shit! It took my breath away and I don't think it was just me.

As we pulled apart and stared into each other's eyes and time stopped. My eyes dropped as I saw her tongue come out and lick the lips that I'd just tasted. I didn't know what to say when I looked back into her eyes. Did I say sorry when I wasn't? Did I ask for more?

Something akin to a smile pulled at her mouth as she reached up and put her hand over mine that was still on the side of her face; her eyes never leaving mine.

"I need to go get ready for dinner." She mumbled softly. All I could do was swallow hard and nod like an idiot. She stood up and I watched her walk slowly out of the games room. _What in the hell just happened?_


	23. Chapter 18 Battling Demons

**Hi Everyone... Well here's THE chapter! I've had this more or less written for quite some time, I've just had to tie everything in beforehand so it all matched up!**

**It's a long one too, so grab a cuppa and get comfy! :-) 9,800 words before all of this inane chatter! LOL!  
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!**

**Sandy**

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**18 Battling Demons.**

"Well I have to work today Rose, so I won't be home." I rolled my eyes to my mother's words.

_Duh... that's why I want to do it today mom... _Well, that's what I _wanted_ to say...

"Yeah, I know Mom, I still have my keys so I'll just let myself in and get the few things I need. You don't have a problem with that do you?" I thought I'd at least ring before actually going over... even though I didn't really have to.

"No Rose, I don't." I heard her let out an exasperated sigh. "Are you ever coming home?"

I was a little taken aback for a second. She sounded almost like she wanted me to come home. _Huh, maybe she's sick of cooking._

"I'm sure I will at some point, I just need a little more time. I'm getting better though – slowly."

"Mmm... So, what time do you think you'll be over?"

"Ah, I'm not sure really."

"Alright, just make sure you lock up before you leave and don't forget to re-arm the system." _Duh!_

"I will. Will dad be home?"

"Not that I know of, he's been down south for the last few days on business. I think he's due home in a couple of days barring nothing goes wrong."

"Okay."

"Alright, well... I should go; I've still got to shower and I have to leave in twenty minutes."

"Okay, bye."

"Yup, sure..." With that I pressed the end button on my cell phone. Speaking to my mother had never been an overly pleasant experience, but that was just... awkward to say the least. I spent the next hour showering, eating breakfast and saying goodbye to Viktor and Mr D. I was surprised the other night when I'd found myself sitting at the kitchen bench by myself and Mr D came in to make himself a cup of coffee. I'd realised over the last few days that the normal 'skin crawling' feeling I got when males came near me, was nowhere near as bad as it used to be, even though it was still there.

"_Are you waiting for something Rose?" Mr D asked me._

"_No, just thinking." I smiled at him._

"_How's everything going?"_

"_A lot better actually." He tilted his head and looked at me._

"_You seem more relaxed than I've seen you for a while."_

"_I am actually."_

"_Penny for your thoughts, Rose?"_

"_Well... I was just thinking that the feeling I normally get around men... isn't there so much anymore..." He gave a small smile and nodded his head. I could see he was pleased to see that I was more comfortable in his presence._

"_I'm glad to hear it. I've been very worried for you, and I must say a little... perturbed that I wasn't the first male you felt comfortable with..." he said while holding his fingers up indicating a half inch space between them. Thinking about the 'first' male made my chest ache. _

_I bit my lip as I looked up at Mr D and wondered if I should push my luck... I knew I was fine around '_Dimitri'_; I was even pretty comfortable around Andre and Adrian. Then there was Nat, he actually got within four feet of me before I had to take a step back. I had to keep trying... "Mr D, could I ask a favour?"_

"_Certainly Rose, what is it?"_

"_Can you just... walk a little closer – slowly?" He smiled a little wider and nodded before pushing away from the bench were he'd been resting against. He took one small step before stopping and raising his eyebrows. I nodded to let him know that I was still okay... Another step and still I was good... _

This looks promising... _I thought to myself._

_Another couple of steps and he was now only about two feet in front of me. The only other guy that had been this close to me in so many weeks had been Dimitri... _

"_All good?" he asked._

"_Yup..." I said returning his smile. I reached out with my hand indicating that I wanted him to try and get a little closer. He lifted his hand and slowly brought it closer to mine. My heart was beating frantically in my chest, but as he got closer, the ringing in my ears started to get louder... _Okay, not so good.

_I grimaced a little as I pulled my hand away... _Shit!

"_Don't worry Rose. You did really, really well." He said as he took a step back and then started to walk back to where he'd been before. "Only a couple of weeks ago, I couldn't get closer than about six feet away, now we are down to six inches... Soon, I'll be able to give you a big hug like I used to do. I call this a huge step in the right direction."_

"_Thank you Mr D, you don't know how much this means to me."_

"_Yes I do." He gave me a quick wink before turning around to finish making his coffee. I stood up, my heart beating fast and we said our goodnights. I made my way up to Lissa's room to tell her what had just happened. I felt so good right now – I felt like I was getting closer to the end of this rather long tunnel._

A little after 8 am, I grabbed my bottle of water went to walk out the door.

"Are you sure you just don't want me to come with you Rose?" Liss asked from the games room.

"No Liss, I run every morning, this is no different." Ever since the 'diner incident', I'd taken to running each morning and then using rocks near the lake as weights.

"Alright, call me if you end up needing a lift home and I'll come get you."

I was happy to see that she seemed to be in a much better mood than last week, which was surprising considering the fight she'd had with Christian on Saturday afternoon. I don't know what it was over, Liss didn't want to talk about it and they still weren't back to their usual happy-go-lucky selves. Hopefully they'd get it together soon...

It was hot today, and as much as I would have rathered do this another day; another _cooler_ day, I just wanted to get this over and done with. I'd needed to get more of my things for a while now, but I just couldn't seem to make myself get up the nerve to go home. I was a lot stronger now, but I still felt that I needed to do this on my own. After all, if I had a freak out, I'd rather it not be witnessed.

A quick stretch and five minutes of fast walking loosened and warmed up my muscles, so I stepped it up and started jogging. I thought back to that day where I kept telling Dimitri how much I hated him as I ran... it still made me laugh. I desperately missed him, our easy friendship... I know I'd been the instigator of the week long abstinence and I knew he'd been working, but I still thought I would have heard from him, even if it was just to see how I was doing. Monday night's training was a little strained and I'd come to the conclusion that he was just reacting to how things went down at the diner just over a week ago.

The diner – that day I could really see the difference in him. It was such a déjà vu moment... I walked in to meet with Lissa and Nat after their day out and there he was, in the same seat, with what looked to be the same woman. I was shocked when she turned around and I realised it was Tasha. The most shocking thing was the difference I'd seen in his face. With me he was happy and friendly but still reserved, even when I thought he was flirting with me, but there with Tasha, he was open and more relaxed than I'd seen him for a while. It was a little confronting. The sound of my phone startled me out of my musings...

I stopped and fumbled around with the phone case that was hooked onto the strap of my backpack and after a few seconds realised I was getting nowhere, so I quickly shrugged the small backpack off my shoulders so that I could see what I was doing... I just hoped that I could get to it before it stopped ringing.

"Hello?" I said puffing into my phone no taking the time to see who it was.

"Hi Rose." _Speak of the devil..._

"Oh hey, what can I do for you?" I said a little harsher than I liked. I was puffing but nowhere near as bad as I used to be.

"I woke up not long ago and thought I'd see what your plans are today; thought I'd see if you wanted to train. We haven't had a session for a week now." I could tell he was being careful with what he was saying, so I reigned in my inner bitch and answered him as best I could.

"Oh, um... I'm actually out jogging right now. I'm on my way to my parent's house to get a few things that I've needed for a while, so I thought I'd use it as my daily exercise."

"Oh okay, well that's good... How much stuff are you getting?"

"Not much seeing as how I'm going to have to carry it all back to Lissa's."

"Do you want me to come pick you up, that way you can get more stuff?"

I know I'd said no to Lissa, but I really missed him; I was having some major withdrawals this week and I really wanted him back in my life, even if it was just as a friend...

So before I could stop myself, the words just tumbled out of my mouth. "Yeah, that would be great, thanks." I gave him the address and he said that he'd be straight over after taking a quick shower. I smiled slightly in anticipation of seeing him again as I hung up and then resumed my jogging. He'd seemed a little more like his old self on the phone... I didn't know if that was a good thing or not.

I was shocked when a couple of minutes later I rounded the corner into my street, I hadn't realised that I'd come so far in such a short time... the phone call had definitely lifted my spirits. I slowed down into a walk so that my body could cool down and slowly made my way to my childhood home. I stood on the path for what seemed to be ages, looking up at the white painted house. It had been ages since I'd been here and in some ways it felt longer than it had actually been. I had a lot of memories here, a lot good, a lot bad... but the feeling I got standing here now was of indifference. This was the house I grew up in and I never was more aware than right now, that this house had never been a home to me. How sad...

I bent forward and opened the latch of the gate and made my way up to the steps; digging around in my backpack for my keys as I went. As I got to the bottom step, the day I came home from hospital and the confrontation with my parents flashed through my mind. I took a deep breath and took one step at a time.

_This is ridiculous Rose... _I thought to myself. I was stronger than this. I took another deep breath, rounded my shoulders and walked confidently to the front door. After unlocking it, I walked over the threshold and had a brief look around before shutting the door behind me. Everything looked the same... it was like time had stopped... like the last six and a half weeks hadn't happened – at least not here.

I walked into the lounge room and looked at the sofa and the rug and was instantly transported back to the party.

"Mase..." I whispered. I closed my eyes and remembered standing here with him, his arms around me – kissing me. "I'll always remember you." I shook my head and turned to walk back into the small entryway of the house before turning right and going up the staircase. The worst room was yet to come and I just wanted to get my things and leave.

At the top of the stairs, I stopped. I wasn't all that sure what I'd do when I walked into my old room, if I even _could_ walk into my old room... I looked to my left and saw that the door was shut. _I'll get to you soon enough... _I thought to myself.

Instead of tackling that elephant, I thought I'd grab some of my things in the bathroom first, so I walked forward and opened the door. It didn't take me long before I had all of my makeup and shit, so now all that was left was the elephant...

I walked to the door and stood with my hand on the handle for a few seconds. I quickly chided myself for being ridiculous again; it was _just_ a room for shit sake... I quickly opened the door and walked inside, dropping my backpack by the door. I looked to my left and made my way over to my closet. I hastily grabbed clothes off their hangers and threw them over my other arm. My faithful old jeans, T-shirts, a couple of dresses... I wasn't really paying all that much attention really. I walked really fast over to my backpack and shoved everything inside as I made my way over to the chest of draws that stood near my bed... the bed that I was trying not to look at. I pulled the drawers open and grabbed handfuls of underwear, panties, bras... I don't know if I got anything matching or not but who cares... Next drawer... shorts... Then I quickly took the photo frame that sat on top of the drawers of Liss, Mia and I that was taken the winter before we graduated from high school... _Fun... I remember what that felt like..._

I grabbed some of my perfumes and some jewellery before turning around and walking around the other side of the bed to grab some of my shoes. They weren't there... I glanced around the room and thought that the only other place they could be was the closet, so I went back over there. Sure enough, there they were. I grabbed a couple of my favourite pairs and walked back to the door. My heart was hammering away frantically in my chest, adrenaline coursed throughout my body. I needed to look at the bed... you know, face my fear and all that crap...

I turned around slowly, steeling myself as I went. I stood transfixed as I looked at what was once a place of comfort and rest. A shudder went through me as I closed my eyes but I willed them open again, I had to face this. I was strong. I saw myself lying on the bed...

The memory of curling up on the soft mattress as my head swam in haze of the drug I'd been given had come back to me the night I saw Jesse and the others at the movies. Now, standing in front of the bed, I could actually picture it...

The next image that flooded into my mind was of me being held there, Aaron on one side, Ralf on the other near the window – Jesse on his knees over the top of me. I remember struggling as I felt myself being held down; a memory that hadn't come back to me until just now... Jesse leant down and said something to me, I can't remember what he said but I know he said something, the muffled tone of his voice was just on the cusp of my memory. I closed my eyes trying to remember, but it was just too far out of reach...

I took a deep, cleansing breath and then turned around to leave my room but all the air left my lungs as the source of my nightmares stood before me at the top of the stairs...

_Jesse..._

"Hello Rose..." he said as he licked his lips. "Come back to the scene of the crime hey bitch! I knew you'd have to poke your head out sooner or later. Who knew you could run so fast..."

_Jesse..._

I couldn't breathe...

My blood pumped loudly in my ears as I stood riveted to the floor in shock. He couldn't be here; he _wouldn't _be here... _would he?_ I didn't realise that I'd even moved from where I'd been standing until the backs of my legs hit the side of my bed behind me and that was enough to shock me out of my stupor somewhat...

"W-what are you d-doing here?" I couldn't help the tremor in my whispered voice.

"I've been w-waiting for you R-Rose." He scoffed, "...why wouldn't I be here?"

"Get out..." I told him. Even to my own ears, my voice sounded weak.

"_That's_ not very welcoming Rosey... I think you could be a _lot_ nicer to me than that, don't you think?"

I slowly moved to my right towards the end of the bed as Jesse walked into my room. Uselessly, my eyes darted around the room, but I knew there was nowhere to go but my sense of flight was in full force. I was trapped! As hard as it felt to breathe, I still found myself panting and I could feel the adrenaline surging through my body as my heart beat a million times a minute.

"What's wrong Rose... cat got ya tongue?" The sneer on his face made my stomach churn.

"Leave Jesse. Now!" My eyes stung as the tears of fear started to prickle at the backs of my eyes... and that feeling just pissed me the hell off. I blinked and took a deep breath; I did _not _want to cry in front of him... I _wouldn't_! I wouldn't give him that satisfaction.

"Oh don't worry Rose, I'll leave, but not before I get what I came for." Goosebumps rose up all over my body. "You see, we didn't have to get to _this _point. I've actually given you many, _many_ chances over the years to ah... give me what I want, but you just _had_ to play hard to get."

"I wasn't playing _any_thing Jesse," I yelled in equal parts of fear and indignation. "I _never_ wanted you. What you wanted was _never_ going to happen."

_Shit! I think I just said the wrong thing... _Jesse's sneering face dropped. His eyes narrowed and his lips flattened into a hard line.

"Oh, it'll happen all right Rose." The whole time he spoke, I inched my way around to the other side of the bed and he followed. I kept looking around for something to use as a weapon but was coming up short.

"Jesse, don't... You haven't done anything yet that will keep you in jail for too long, but if you do this..." I knew I was pulling at straws, he & I both knew that between what he did to me and being responsible for Mason's death, that he was going away for a long time.

"_IF_?" He sneered indignantly at me. "Oh Rose, there's no _'if' _in this little scenario. I _always_ get what I want; you've known me long enough to know that."

He walked closer to the end of the bed as I backed my way over to the desk; surely there'd be something there that I could use as a weapon. The only problem now was that I was cornered with the wall on my right, the bed on my left and the desk behind me... I said nothing while he walked closer to me, but now that I had nowhere else to go, my hand frantically felt behind me and soon my left hand found the glass paperweight at the corner of the desk.

The next problem I had was judging how close I let him come to me? Too far away and he'd definitely be able to defend himself, to close and I wouldn't have enough room to swing.

"You know, I thought you'd fight a little more than this, maybe I didn't have to drug you after all." He chuckled...

As he reached towards me, digging his fingers into the top of my left arm, my instinct was to try and swing with what was in my hand but I knew I wouldn't be able to. I had to make a decision on either letting it go in a place where I'd be able to reach it again or dropping it to the floor where it could possibly go out of my reach and for once in my life I chose wisely, I chose the former... The pain of his iron grip made me release it anyway but at least I knew where it was, hopefully I'd get a chance to get a hold of it again soon.

"Don't you see how much easier it would have been to just take it like all the other girls?" He said as his hand made its way down my arm...

The look in his eye and the memory of some of the girls he'd draped himself over at school made my stomach somersault... I felt like I was going to throw up. Then I realised what position I was in...

_Wrist grab! _

Instantly Dimitri's training ran through my mind; I used all my strength and I pulled out of his grip, just like he showed me. I darted to my left, grabbing hold of the paperweight as I climbed over the bed but he was quick to recover and reached out and grabbed me around the waist; pulling me down onto the bed stomach first. Instinct took over and I twisted under his grip; bringing the paperweight up and smashing into the side of his head.

As fast as everything was happening, it felt as if time was slowing down... my whole being felt... on fire. Adrenaline pumped in my veins like never before...

He let go of me with a roar, but I didn't get far. He grabbed at my shirt before I was able to get up and pulled me onto my back once again.

"ARGH... _FUCK_! YOU _BITCH_!" He yelled as his fist zeroed in on my face. It landed hard onto my cheek; blinding pain seared into my every conscious thought, I could focus on nothing else, including the weapon in my hand. As I lay dazed and in pain, the paperweight dropped to the floor behind my head as he continued his rant. "All you had to _do_ was _lay_ there, now you've _really_ pissed me off and I'm gonna make you hurt." By the end his spit was spraying everywhere. I felt his hands release me and then grab the top of my shirt where he ripped it in half.

Painfully opening my eyes, I saw that his attention was not on subduing me so much anymore so I brought my hands down from my face and rammed them against his chest; pushing him backwards with everything I had, but even as he stumbled backwards he never stopped clawing at me. Unfortunately I couldn't push him far enough so that I could get away from him.

He came back at me and grabbed a hold of me once again. Giving up on keeping me on the bed, he pulled hard at anything he could grab a hold of and reefed me off the bed, onto the floor at his feet. Instinct was in full flight mode now and I kicked out against his legs and scrambled across the floor to end of the bed where he'd stood not long before. As I got to the end of the bed I started to stand up so that I could run, but he grabbed me around the throat. His arm tightened around my neck and I tried to scream but I couldn't; I struggled but he was just too strong. I could hardly breathe...

"You really think..." he hissed at my ear. "...that I'm going to go to prison for _nothing_ Rose; for an _attempt? _If I'm going anyway, then I'm gonna go for something worthwhile; what I wanted in the first place." Suddenly his mood altered and I felt his laughter at my back. "I must say Rose... _this _is what I expected from you, a bloody good fight!" At that point

_Grab his arm Rose... _Dimitri... I could hear his voice in my mind.

Again his training came back to me. If I didn't get some air soon I was going to pass out and I couldn't allow that to happen. I grabbed a hold of Jesse's arm and ducked my chin as far into the hollow of his elbow as I could, releasing some of the pressure on my neck; I could now breathe a little easier. He was pulling me back to the bed but I fought against him, I was _NOT_ going down without one hell of a fight. I used everything left in me to take a step forward; one very important step forward... I got down on one knee and before he knew what happened, I flipped him over my shoulder.

I should have just jumped over the bed and ran out the door, but the adrenaline was still pumping in overdrive and accompanying it was a pure and unadulterated fury that I'd never felt before even after everything I'd gone through recently... Everything he and his lackeys had put me through in the last 6 weeks and the far reaching consequences of their actions, fuelled an anger that took over all conscious thought. Well... in a way, I had felt something similar...

_His death was unfortunate... _That sentence fuelled another red rage, at another time... and just thinking of that only increased what I was already feeling.

I could hear the most terrible sound, it was _terrifying_... it was _me_. The scream that was coming out of my mouth was something I didn't think I was even able to produce. All the terror, all the fear, all the rage that had built up inside of me since he'd attacked me last time came out.

My vision blackened as I threw myself on top of him. My fists flew... smashing into his face and anywhere else I could find an open spot, I screamed as I lost control. To start with I was sure I heard him laugh, but one solid punch changed that. His laughter was soon replaced with grunts and curses and then... nothing. At one point I became aware that he lifted one knee up to try and protect his stomach but that left him unprotected somewhere else... I rammed my knee upwards with everything I could muster while my hands never let up on their barrage. I became something frightening. I couldn't stop, I didn't want to stop; all I saw was the source of _everything_ bad in my life. So I kept hitting and hitting...

Then I wasn't...

I was being pulled away. I screamed as I fought not only to get back to the demon on my floor so that I could finish him off but also against whoever had grabbed hold of me. Whoever it was, was taking me away from my goal. But I couldn't get away...

"Rose... Stop."

No... _never_! He _had_ to die... for everything he'd done to _me_, for killing _Mason_ – he had to _die_. He had to _pay_... for everything, and _I_ would be the one to dole out his punishment. _I_ would be the one to exact revenge... it was _MINE_! Revenge was _MINE_!

"Let _go_ of me! He has to _pay_!" I threw my arm backwards, my elbow coming into contact with whoever was behind me, their grip loosening slightly but not enough for me to take advantage of it. My whole body writhed in their strong grip...

"Rose! Snap out of this! This isn't you, come back to me Roza..."

_Roza...? _

_Dimitri...?_

Dimitri...

"Shhh, you can stop."

_No..._

"Let me _go_..." I yelled.

"Look at me..." His voice was beside me... "Roza – look at me."

"Dimitri...?" I whispered. My eyes couldn't tear themselves away from the bleeding waste of space lying prone on my bedroom floor.

"Look at me Roza." He was trying to pull my face away from _him... _Eventually, I could resist no more and my eyes locked with his. "It's alright, you're alright. Keep looking at me." I felt his hand leave my chin and cradle the side of my face; his thumb lightly traced over the spot where I'd been punched...

The backs of my eyes started to sting once again and within seconds my vision started to blur. My body started to shake uncontrollably and I felt hot tears fall down my cheeks.

"Are you alright? Did he hurt you?" He asked as I felt him pull my shirt across my chest.

I shook my head and held his eyes with mine; too scared to look away as I knew once I did, I'd fall apart completely. I think I was yet to take a breath... His eyes darted all across my face, down to my neck and narrowed slightly before looking back.

"It's alright now Roza. I'm here now. Breathe..."

I let out the air that was in my lungs in a rush and that's all it took... "He... he..." I couldn't say anything more, my throat closed over. I couldn't stop shaking... "He..."

"Shhh..."

"He... tr...tr... he..." I knew what I wanted to say but the words just wouldn't come out... I could barely breathe...

"Shhh, I'm here now." He said as he pulled me into his body. The he whispered something that sounded like 'I'll never leave you again.' But that didn't make any sense. I sat in-between his legs, my hands gripped into his shirt and he slowly rocked us both as we sat on the hardwood floor, almost in the doorway of my bedroom. His hold on me never let up as I screamed, cried and blubbered incoherently; his arms wrapped tightly around my body. I could feel one of his strong hands holding the back of my head, the other gripping my bruised shoulder... and that's where I finally fell apart. I heard him talking, but I don't know what he said, the only thing I was conscious of where the images of what had just happened... going over and over and over in my mind...

"He came back for me." _...to finish the job._ I added silently... "He came back..." I sobbed.

How did he know where I was? Did he follow me? I don't know how long it took for me to calm down, but when I did all I could do was stare while I shook and hiccupped at the doors of my closet that were in my line of sight. I held onto Dimitri for dear life; his shirt still held firmly in my shaking hands.

"Other than this..." Dimitri asked as he touched my cheek again, "...are you sure he didn't hurt you Rose?" I couldn't move... I couldn't talk... I couldn't think. I just stared.

I heard the sirens and then I heard noises and voices close by... My grip on him tightened. "It's alright Roza."

I heard footfalls on the staircase, getting closer and closer.

"In here..." I heard Dimitri say.

"Is she alright?" I heard a familiar woman's voice.

"I think so. She's in shock." Dimitri said. I closed my eyes and the last thing I saw was the image of Jesse on my bedroom floor, that red, mangled image was now on the back of my eyelids. _Hopefully he's dead._

I heard a lot of noise and footsteps all around me.

"She did that?" I heard someone say.

"Man, what did she use; a baseball bat? Is he still alive?" I heard a guy ask.

"Yeah..." _Damn..._

"What went on here Mr Belikov?" the same woman as before said.

"Can we do this later please?"

"Certainly, just hang on for a tic." A few seconds later I felt someone grab my hand and do something to my fingernails. "Okay, that's all I need. Why don't you go clean up her hands?"

"Yeah, can you grab a shirt out of her cupboard first please?" I saw someone walk to my cupboard; I saw the door open but I don't think anything really registered. Dimitri pulled my face up to his. "Roza, we need to put this shirt on you alright?"

I resisted at first, when I felt him try to pry my hands out of his shirt and stupidly, I cringed when the woman tried to touch me... Dimitri told me that everything was alright and that no-one would touch me that I didn't want to. He pushed the ripped shirt from me, (luckily I had on my sports bra underneath,) and then slipped the T-shirt over my head. One by one, my arms gently went through the sleeves and I must admit that I did feel better.

"I'm going to take you downstairs now alright?" He held my gaze for a few seconds before had lifted himself off the ground with me still in his arms. I rested my head into the crook of his neck as we made our way down the stairs.

He took me into the kitchen and tried to place me up onto the bench beside the sink, but I just couldn't let him go just yet... "No..." I whispered. I looked at his face and shook my head, my hands didn't let go.

"I won't let you go, Roza. It's alright now; I just need to see your hands." When I didn't say anything, he placed me on the counter top. The hand I had around his neck slipped down to join the hand that currently had his shirt in a death grip. "I'm not going anywhere..." he said as he slowly worked the fingers of one hand to release him. "Say something Roza..."

"I... I heard your voice..." I said in a really raspy voice. "...you told me... to grab his arm."

"I'm so proud of you." He whispered as his left hand cupped the side of my face... "So, so proud."

"I couldn't stop... I couldn't stop."

"I know, but it's all over now. I called Lissa, she'll be here soon."

His right hand let of mine and he reached over to grab a tea-towel that hung over the handle of the oven door, then moved to wet it under the sink tap. He came back to stand in front of me and I watched him gently wipe the blood off my hands. There was a lot more damage this time compared to before; who would have thought Jesse's face would do more damage than a tree. I turned my head absentmindedly and stared at nothing, my mind's eye watched as Mini me tucked her knees up under her chin and gently rock back and forth on her favourite chaise lounge. I felt a strange detachment as I watched her retreat back into the shell she'd not long come out from. For now I was on my own...

"Some of these cuts will probably need to be stitched Rose," Dimitri said, pulling me out of my reverie. "...they're too deep, and I think you'll need to have your cheek x-rayed." My hands were a mess and every minute, the swelling got worse. After my hands were free of most of the blood, Dimitri placed them in my lap before bringing his hands to either side of my face.

"I was scared Dimitri." I said in a scratchy whisper as I looked into his eyes.

"I know you were, but you were strong when you needed to be. You'll get through this."

I knew that would be true if I still had him around, but I don't. He'd been so distant lately; it felt as if I could no longer rely on him being there if I suddenly crumbled. I gave a very non-committal nod as I looked down at the swollen, bleeding mess in my lap. Just then I heard my mother's voice and I cringed. Memories of the last time she came to see me after being attacked flooded my brain...

"_Rose_!"

"In here Janine." Dimitri called out as he took a step or two away from me. I looked at him for a few seconds before turning to see my mother as she strode into the kitchen.

"What happened?" She asked as she came to stand at my side inspecting my hands and face. I wanted to say it but I couldn't seem to move my mouth.

"Jesse came back." Dimitri said for me.

Mom looked at him before looking back to me; her eyes going straight to my cheek. "How bad did he hurt you?"

At that moment, the paramedics came down the last few steps of the staircase and started wheeling towards the front door. Mom turned to see them take Jesse out of the house; I don't know what was going through her head but she was scowling when she turned back to us.

"Can someone please explain what happened here?"

"I'd like to know that too if you're up to it Rose?" It was Detective Morris, and Detective Bitch face was right behind her. Dimitri pushed away from where he'd been leaning on the table and I thought he was going to leave but he didn't. He took the few steps that separated us and came to lean beside me against the counter where I was still sitting and I felt his arm touch my back. _At least his sense of protection wasn't all in my head. _He knew exactly what I needed, when I needed it... _well most of the time. _I don't know what I'd do if I lost him from my life completely.

"Are you Rose?" Dimitri asked me.

"I'll try..." I said quietly. My hands still shook but I took a couple of deep breaths while I tried to get my thoughts together. "I came home to get a few things."

"Did you drive her here Mr Belikov?" Det Bitch face asked.

"No, I came later."

"I walked here, well ran actually." I said.

"You ran over? How did you expect to take things back to Ms Dragomir's place?"

"I was only getting a few clothes and stuff, nothing big." Det Norris nodded slowly as she wrote down what I was saying. "I had been here for about ten minutes or so; I was just about to leave. I'd rushed around getting stuff, but I hadn't looked at the bed... I needed to look at... the bed." I closed my eyes and took a few breaths and clenched my hands in an effort to try and stop them from shaking. "Then I turned around and... he was standing... at the top of the stairs."

"Calm down Rose," Dimitri said. "Relax you hands; you're making them bleed again..." I opened my eyes when I felt him try to open my fists. "Breathe..." he whispered.

"So you didn't see or hear him before then?" Norris asked me as mom wiped at my hands.

"No... I was... my attention was on the bed." I looked up from what mom was doing and found myself looking directly into Dimitri's eyes. He was looking at me like he wanted me to just tell him, so I did. "I tried to talk to him... tried to reason. He wouldn't listen. He said... he said that if he was going to go to prison, then he was going to take what he'd come for in the first place. He grabbed me... hard, I tried to get away but he kept pulling me back. I hit him..." I whispered, never taking my eyes from his. "...with a paperweight; that's when he punched me, but it wasn't enough. I kicked him... tried to run... then he grabbed me around my neck and tried to pull me back to the bed. I couldn't breathe. Then I heard your voice... in my head... '_Grab his arm' _you said; that's when that move you taught me flashed into my mind. So I grabbed his arm and put my chin down and then somehow pulled him over my shoulder."

"What happened then Miss Hathaway?"

I kept looking at Dimitri... "I hit... I punched... kneed him. He tried to..." I took a deep breath.

"You can do this..." Dimitri said quietly as he wiped at the tears before going into my mouth. My whole body was shaking now...

"He tried to hit out at me but all I could see, was the person who had hurt me so much... He took so much from me... my confidence, my freedom, my home, friends... and he came _back_. He said he wasn't going to leave until he got what he wanted. All that kept running through my head was... no! _No_... no... He _wasn't_ going to take anything else. So I kept _hitting_, and _hitting_, until..." I closed my eyes and then I felt his arms wrap around my body...

"I heard crashing sounds," Dimitri said from above me, "...as I got out of my car, so I ran into the house; that's when I heard yelling and screaming from upstairs. So I ran up and when I came into the room I saw Rose punching Jesse and I pulled her off him. She was unaware who had her at first and she fought against me. Then when she finally realised it was me, she stopped fighting; that's when she fell apart. She had been calm for not even five minutes when you arrived."

"And that's when you called us?"

"Yes."

"How did he know you'd be here Rose?" Morris asked.

"He didn't... he told me that he'd been waiting for me to leave Lissa's alone. He followed me..."

"Okay, well... I have one more question alright?" I nodded. "Other than the punch, did he hurt you; did he get what he came for?"

"No."

"Okay thank you Rose, I'm sorry I had ask, I know that was a hard thing to do. We'll be in touch with you soon alright. You should go get your injuries looked at." With that Morris gave my mother a card and they started to walk out of the kitchen. That's right when Liss arrived... with red eyes and Adrian!

"Rose..." She cried. She came running over to me and wrapped her arms around my body. Behind her I could see Adrian...

"Aunt Tatiana..." He said with a nod to Bitch face. _Tatiana? Aunt? What the hell?_

"Adrian, what are you doing here?" She asked.

"I'm friends with Rose; you know we're neighbours with the Dragomir's."

"Rose honey, are you okay?" Liss asked, pulling my attention away from what was going on behind her.

_Oh... this is just way too much... Everyone knows friggin everyone... She's his aunt, Dimitri works for my Mom, Olena's his Mom, Tasha's his... Too much, too much..._ "Too much, too much..." I mumbled as my breathing started to get out of control, blackness started swirling before my eyes...

"Rose...?" _Who was that?_

"Too much... Too... much..." I whispered as I felt myself lean to the right.

"Rose..." Whoever was calling me, sounded like they were talking under mud.

_Can't keep my head up... _

"Too..."

Can't breathe...

"Much..."

Ears ringing...

Black...

=x=

"Rose?" _Voices... still under mud... with a fog horn._ "Why... wake up?"

_Lissa? Why is Liss so far away?_

"She will soon... shock... too much... shut down... to recover... She'll wake... she's ready." I didn't recognise who that was.

"Dimitri... something. She might...if you... to her."

I could hear all this buzzing in my ears as I felt my body move and then I felt something let go of my hand. I wasn't even aware that it was being held until the warmth was gone, but it was soon replaced with something stronger, bigger, warmer. What I was lying on moved again and then everything was quiet. I felt my arm move – upwards... Something soft on my hands.

"I'm sorry." _Dimitri's voice... _"...should have... faster... I'm so sorry Rose. Just open your eyes... please."

I felt something touch my cheek.

"You beat him Rose; you won." He whispered close to me, he wasn't the one under mud. "He won't hurt you ever again." His voice was clearer now and I felt my hand twitch. "That's it love, open your eyes Roza."

_Love? _My head was thumping. Headache... "Urgh..."

"Open those beautiful eyes for me... come on." I could feel it now; he was running his hand from the top of my head, down to my cheeks, over and over... _Beautiful?_

"Dimitri..." I mumbled.

"I'm here. Open your eyes and look at me Roza." I squinted up at him and even though he was smiling, I could see the worry in his eyes.

"Hey." I said in a soft voice.

"Hey yourself," _God, his eyes are beautiful. _"Are you feeling better?"

"Than...?"

That got a giggle. "Here, drink this; it'll make you feel better." He reached over to the coffee table and grabbed a glass of water. He leant towards me and slipped a hand under the back of my head and lifted it off the pillow. "It'll help raise your blood pressure. A small sip first."

I drank a little bit as I watched his face, he seemed so much the Dimitri he'd always been, before he disappeared from my life.

"Where have you been?" I asked after he pulled the glass away from my lips.

"I've been right here Roza."

"No, you haven't. Did I do something wrong?"

His forehead creased as he looked to the table and put the glass of water down. He turned back to me and held both of my hands in his before looking back up into my eyes.

"No." He said shaking his head. "...you did nothing wrong Roza."

"Then where, where have you been?"

He glanced up at the doorway behind me before coming back to my eyes. "I had to pull back Rose."

"Why?"

"You didn't need..." he took a deep breath before continuing. "You needed friends and family, not..."

"Not, what Dimitri?" I was starting to get a little annoyed at his evasiveness when he glanced back up at the doorway; I could hear my mother's voice.

"I was getting too close, you didn't need that."

"I needed _you_..."

"Oh Roza..." he whispered as his face crumpled and he placed his hands on either side of my face, brushing his fingers against my skin.

"You gave me strength Dimitri; you made me want to fight to get my life back... and then you left, you were gone. You said..."

"I'm so sorry Roza; I thought I was doing the right thing, I was wrong." _Wrong about leaving? Wrong about his feelings?_ I had no idea what was real anymore. "I should never have pulled away from you, I realise that now." He said as if he'd read my mind. His hands had moved slightly; his fingers sliding into the hair behind my ear.

"Do you love Tasha?" The words came out before I could stop them. It was something that Mini Me often thought of in the safety of my head...

"Yes... but not in the way you think." Again his eye looked up behind me. "We're only friends Rose, that's all we'll ever be."

"You looked so happy when you were with her."

"It's easy being around her, we have a lot of history, and she doesn't..."

"...read you, get into your head...?" I offered.

"No, she doesn't. No-one's ever really – seen me, like you do." I gave a small nod in agreement.

"Did you want more, than just friendship?" I didn't really want to know but I knew it was a question I had to ask for my own peace of mind.

He didn't respond immediately. "A relationship with Tasha would have been easy, but..." again he glanced up behind me. "...that wouldn't have been fair on anyone, least of all Tasha."

"Why?"

"Because no-one deserves to be second best, and that's what she would have been."

My heart picked up speed in anticipation... Would he tell me?

"Why?" _I had to hear him say it... here, in front of me. _

"Because my heart belongs to someone else." I think I stopped breathing...

"Who?" I said in the worst girly voice I'd heard come out of my mouth.

"Hmm, this most fascinating woman," he said with a slight grin. "She's funny, brave, incredibly sexy, brave, feisty, brave, and the love of my life."

I gasped... He'd better be bloody talking about me or I'll skin him alive. I don't know what my face looked like but he answered my unasked question...

"You Rose... I'm talking about you." _Oh thank God! _I let out the chest full of air that I'd unknowingly been holding. Hot tears flowed from my eyes and he quickly wiped them away with the soft pads of his thumbs. "Nothing to say?" He said lifting one eyebrow in that sexy way of his.

"Say it again." I whispered as I looked into his eyes. I wondered if he knew what I meant but his widening grin told me he knew exactly what I meant.

"I love you Roza."

I couldn't stop the little sob of happiness that erupted at those words. "Again..." I said as more tears fell.

"I love you, my beautiful Roza."

"Again..."

This time he didn't speak, he just slowly closed the distance between us, my eyes darted down to his beautiful mouth as my lips opened slightly. Automatically my tongue poked out to wet my lips in anticipation of what I really, really hoped was coming before I brought my eyes back up to his... I felt like I was drowning in a pit of molten chocolate and I just wanted to dive in and take a huge, big mouthful! This even had Mini me uncurl herself from her previous position on her lounge...

"Let me show you." He whispered just out of reach of my lips.

_Oh God... Did I brush my teeth? _

I could feel my body tremble, and as light as a feather, his lips touched mine. "Breathe Roza." He said softly... I'd forgotten... Who could blame me? I mean – come on...

After I took a breath and let out a rather embarrassing whimper, he brought his lips to mine again, this time a little harder. My hands were now under the control of Mini me who had not only come out of her comatose state but had changed into a flimsy, see-through negligee and fluffy high heel shoes... and all too soon she was acting like the tart she is and moved my hands slowly up his sides. Over that beautiful hard muscle I'd been privy to on a few rare occasions, but she didn't stop at just that... _Oh no! _Upward she took them until they had weaved themselves into his beautiful, soft, long brown hair. Okay, well maybe _I_ had done that; I can't remember how many times I'd wondered if his hair really was as soft as it looked. I had to know...

I shuddered as I felt his tongue trace along my bottom lip and now more of my body was under the control of the inner hussy otherwise known as Mini me... My mouth opened instantly against his touch and I let out another, more dignified moan as I let his soft tongue slip inside my mouth and brush against my own.

My hands gripped tighter into his hair as I deepened the kiss which he whole heartedly returned. Every nerve in my body was firing, so much so that my toes curled. I was only slightly aware of the fact that my body was shamelessly and wantonly pushing up into his above me. I nearly melted into mush when he slipped an arm under my back and pulled me even tighter into him.

Now I had him, I never wanted to let him go but I needed to take a breath. Yeah, I could have breathed through my nose, but at the moment my brain was only capable of doing two things at once... holding on to the God in my arms and keeping my lips firmly attached to his, that was pretty much all I could think of right now... unfortunately breathing wasn't optional so I had to pull away.

"Wow..." I said breathlessly in between gasping for air.

"Yeah..."

"I love you too."

"I know you do..." He said with the smile that I loved so much.

We were inches apart, he didn't pull away... I stared into his bottomless, lava chocolate, hypnotic eyes and everything around us disappeared.

"I've wanted to do that for a _very_ long time." He said quietly. I wanted to be angry with him, but bloody hell... _those eyes..._

"Don't let me stop you from continuing..." I must admit that a little part of me thought I was still in dreamland and didn't want to waste my time here with idle chit-chat, not when I could be doing _that_ again. He let out a soft chuckle before speaking again.

"God, I've missed you." He whispered. He closed the small distance between us once again, but this time the kiss wasn't feather light, it was a little bit more... hungry. I'd wanted to do _this_ for a very long time too and now that the time was here, I was going to make damn sure that I made it good.

"Ahem!" I heard from behind me. Dimitri and I broke apart and both looked up to the doorway behind us. My neck was twisted in a funny angle, but it didn't make a difference at who was standing there...


	24. Chap 19 Proclamations and Confrontations

**19 Proclamations and Confrontations**

Mom stood in the doorway with Liss and Adrian behind her to one side but the different emotions coming from all of them were polar opposites of each other. Mom was about to have kittens; big, orange kittens with black stripes, golden eyes and really long teeth and claws. Her hands were clenched at her sides and her face seemed to be the same color as the fire that was about to spew from her eyes... I'd seen this look before.

Liss on the other hand looked like she was about to burst. Her excitement was barely being contained within her slightly jumping body, the grin on her face threatening to split her head in half. Adrian, well... his eyes darted between Dimitri and I but his face showed no emotion.

"Belikov? What in the _hell_ is going on here?" My mother growled.

I saw him turn his head back towards me, so I turned to look up at him... I bit my bottom lip wondering what he was going to say.

"There are some things that I think we need to talk about Janine." He said. I was amazed at how calm his voice was.

"No shit! _Ya think_? I can't _wait_ to hear you explain _this_ Belikov." She ranted.

"Ms Hathaway?" I'd never been happier to hear Detective Ivanson's voice in my life. "Can I have a word with you please?"

"This isn't finished." My mother growled at us before walking away._ Yeah, my mother the Pit-bull; she'd never let this go without having her say._

"What do you want me to tell her?" Dimitri asked me.

"Um... can't we just skip out while she's not looking?"

"No. You know that will only make matters worse." He slowly traced his fingers down my cheek and across my lips; his eyes following their movement. Mini me once again asserted her control over me by opening my lips and making my tongue dart out to taste his fingers. She was most impressed to hear that movement garner a soft growl from the owner of said fingers; she wasn't the only one, truth be told.

Tearing my eyes away from Dimitri's, I glanced back behind me again to see that we were alone again.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Dimitri asked when I turned back to him.

"Ask me that again later." The image of Jesse being wheeled out on the gurney flashed into my head. "How bad did I hurt him?"

"I don't know, do you want me to find out?"

"No. Why did he come after me again? What did he hope to gain from it?" By the look on Dimitri's face and the clenching of his jaw, it was taking him everything he had not to go ask Jesse those very same questions – but maybe not so nicely.

"I don't know Roza, I really don't. But I'm going to make sure that he never has a chance to hurt you or anyone else, ever again. I promise you that."

I believed him.

Hours later, the police had collected everything they needed from my bedroom; photos of my hands (which had since been stitched up by paramedics because I refused to go to hospital) had been taken, and everyone was finally leaving. Dimitri, Adrian, Liss and I sat around the kitchen table drinking cups of hot chocolate as my mother shut the front door. She'd been quietly simmering while everyone was still here, so I knew the inquisition was about to begin.

"I think you need to stay here tonight Rose." My mother said matter-of-factly as she walked into the kitchen. "We need to talk." There was no mistaking the tone of her voice, but in this instant, she was not going to get her wish.

I looked at Liss and Dimitri before replying. "I can't stay here mom. I just..." I closed my eyes and swallowed as I thought about sleeping in my room, on _that _bed. "I just can't, I'm sorry."

My mother walked to the kettle on the kitchen counter where she started to make herself a coffee and then turned back to look at me for a while. "Well, I'm sure Lissa can come back and get you later on, after we speak. You don't mind do you Lissa?"

"No, not at all." My friend said quickly.

"No need to make Lissa drive so late, I'll just take her back when we're finished." Dimitri said from beside me. I was hoping that this was his way of saying that not only was he not leaving me here on my own, but that he would be leaving with me. My mother just glared at him before looking back to me.

"We have a lot to talk about and I need a shower; I won't be long. Goodbye Lissa, Adrian." And then she was gone.

"Well, that was a dismissal if ever I heard one." Adrian said snidely once we heard her go up the stairs.

I rolled my eyes as my friends stood up quickly, loudly dragging their chairs across the floor. "Be thankful that she even said your name Adrian." Their eyes darted between Dimitri and I before Lissa's finally landed on me, giving me a consolatory look.

"Call me if you need me." Liss said before she hugged me and kissed my cheek. "I'm so sorry that I wasn't here for you."

"Don't be, I'm alright." She gave me one last kiss and then walked out into the hall. Adrian gave an awkward smile that I knew was meant to be supportive and then left to catch up to Lissa; it didn't take long before they both quietly left the house. Dimitri and I stared into each other's eyes in silence when we heard the front door click shut.

"Scared?" I asked him meekly.

"Not at all." He said confidently.

I felt my face redden slightly before I let out a soft snicker. "You're quite the masochist aren't you?"

"You have no idea Roza." He said taking my hand in his and suddenly became serious. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry for putting you through all of this. Had I not been so..." he looked down at our hands as he deeply sighed. "...pig-headed; I would have been here, I could have saved..."

"No." I interrupted. "Don't go there. I can tell you without a word of doubt that he would have found a way to get to me; his intention was clear. You couldn't have been with me twenty-four hours a day and he would've found a way."

He let one of his hands release mine and brought it up to my face. His eyebrows drew together as he scanned my face and then stared into my eyes. "I shudder to think what could have happened."

"It's funny, you know... I, I don't know how to put this into words but... looking back on the last few hours, I know I've had a couple of crashes but I would have thought that I'd be more of a mess than I am but I'm not, and I think I know why that is."

"Why?"

"You say, 'you shudder to think what could have happened?' Well, what could have happened, _did _happen. You didn't pull him off me, _I _pulled him off me; _I _saved myself. I finally did what I was unable to do before and that's all because of you. You gave me the strength and the tools to defend myself. You taught me to have faith in my ability to no longer be his victim. If you hadn't shown me discipline, you know... that stupid running..." At this he smiled. "...shown me that I could be strong, shown me how to fight back... today would have ended up very different." I slipped my hand out of his and brought it and my other one up to cup his face. "You say you _'could have'_ saved me... you did Dimitri. You saved me by teaching me how to save myself, and for that I owe you my life..." my voice was almost a whisper now.

"No..."

"Yeah, Dimitri... if you'd been ten minutes earlier, you would have been here to fight him off me, but by _not_ being here... _I _fought him off me; _I _took my life back that he'd stolen from me." Tears now fell down my cheeks. "_I _did that and I _needed_ to do that. Now I know that no matter what happens in my life from now on, _I _know that I am strong enough to fight back and that's all because of you. You gave me that gift... and I can't tell you how much I love you for that."

His answering smile kicked my heart rate up into overdrive just before he pulled me out of my chair. I sat straddling his lap as he brought his lips softly to mine once more. "I love hearing you say those words, I you too Roza," he whispered, "...and I'm never letting you go again." The next kiss was more... _much_, _much_ more. Like he was trying to make up for lost time, I wasn't about to argue.

"Ahem..." _Oh for shit sake, piss off Mom!_

Our lips parted and we looked into each other's eyes briefly before moving away from one another, but Dimitri kept a hold of my hands before looking up to my mother.

"Who's going to start?" My mother said as she sat in a chair on the opposite side of the table. When neither of us said anything, she continued. "Okay, I guess it's me then. You seemed to have omitted quite a few relevant details when you told me you knew my daughter, Dimitri."

"Only one."

"A pretty big one don't you think?"

"At the time, my feelings were my own."

My mother's eyes stared at his face for a few seconds before narrowing onto mine. "And you Rose?"

The tone in her voice put me instantly on the defensive. "Hmm... well, I'm an adult and I don't have to explain _anything_ to you."

"Roza..."

"No Dimitri. I've spent my whole life looking after myself because I knew I had no-one there to do it for me. She can't just waltz into my life, try to play 'mother' and expect me to capitulate. It's _not_ going to happen." I turned back to my mother now... "You've had eighteen years to be my mother; you even had a chance just over six weeks ago, but even then work was more important than trying to help your only child piece together her shattered psyche... But what did you do mother? I'll tell what you did, you blamed _me_ and then you left it up to my eighteen year old friends to be my strength and comfort..." I took a deep breath and swiped furiously at the tears.

"All you did was try and drag me into the house after _they _brought me home, even though the thought of going back inside terrified me. But instead of trying to find out what was going on with me, you just screamed at me to grow up and stop making a _scene_. I'll _never_ forgive you for that." I saw Dimitri turn his face towards my mother. "You made me feel as though _I'd_ done something wrong to cause that prick to hurt me and kill Mason; you never even went to his funeral. _You don't have the right to ask me anything!_" My hands were shaking again...

"Every day my mistakes haunt me Rose," she said with her voice escalating as well. "...and that's _my_ cross to bear. I'm not going to make excuses for my shortcomings as a mother..."

"Of course not..." I muttered under my breath.

"But don't think that I _don't _know _exactly _what you've been going through... _exactly_." My eyes narrowed slightly as I watched my mother's eye focus on some distant memory, but they soon came back to the here and now.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, it's not important." She said taking a deep breath. Her well skilled mask of stoicism was now firmly back in place.

"Yeah well... lucky for me I have friends that _were_ there to help me pick up the pieces, and you can thank Dimitri for the fact that I'm sitting here right now and not in some hospital bed or morgue slab!" My voice was now much louder than it was a minute ago, it had been rising with years of pent up frustration and anger. I was now on my feet and pointing my finger at Dimitri while yelling at my mother. "_He's_ the one who gave me back my self confidence and made me feel as though I was _worth_ something instead of a mistake made in one night of stupidity... _He's_ the one who taught me how to defend myself... _he's_ the one..." I said in tears as I looked back into his eyes. I could see he knew what I meant... _He's the one – for me! _

"Calm down." Dimitri said as he grabbed the hand pointing in his direction.

"NO... She doesn't get to dictate to me anymore Dimitri. She gave up that right a _long_ time ago!" My breathing had built up rapidly throughout my rant and now I couldn't slow it down... it was happening again, just like in the hospital six weeks ago and then the kitchen earlier... I couldn't slow it down and now the black spots were dancing in my vision once more.

"Roza, you'll pass out again, take a deep breath and hold it." I couldn't... "Come on, breathe deep."

But it was too late, my legs gave way and he quickly jumped out of his chair and pulled me against his body; grabbing me around the waist with one arm and around the back of my neck with the other, effectively stopping me from ending up on the floor again.

"Breathe... look at me and breathe." he whispered against my lips. His eyes held mine as my senses were flooded in his scent, I nearly felt hypnotised. "Take a deep breath Roza."

Even though he spoke the words softly, the power in his voice and the warmth of his breath against my lips caused my body to do as it was commanded. My skin tingled when he brought his forehead to mine. My brain was moosh, but that didn't mean Mini me's was... "Thank you..." she made me whisper as my eyes locked with his. "Master..."

I couldn't help it... it just slipped out!

The smile that pulled at his mouth was... like no other I'd seen, but it was the look in his eyes that almost stopped my heart. The look of possession was there only for an instant before he blinked it away. When we finally emerged from our little bubble, we found we were alone.

"Did you know she'd left?" I asked.

"No..."

"Can we leave now?" He turned to look at the doorway that led from the kitchen out to the living room.

"Yeah, we should really let your mother know that we're going though."

It didn't take long to find her; she was sitting on the lounge chair with a glass of what looked like scotch in her hand. Her eyes glanced our way as we stood in the doorway but she didn't look at us.

"When will I see you next?" She asked.

"I'm not sure mom but you know where I'll be."

She nodded before standing up and walking over to me.

"I should have given this to you a long time ago." I couldn't see what she had in her hand but I held my hand out to her. "Your father gave this to me; I'd like you to have it."

I was a little shocked to see what she'd given me. Seeing it now brought back many memories but I hadn't seen it for a long time.

"Do you remember it?" She asked.

"Yes."

"It's from your father's homeland. Its full name is Nazar Boncugu or just Nazar, but it's mostly called an 'evil eye talisman'. It is said that whoever shall wear this will have protection from evil and grant you luck."

I looked down at the cold glass disc and gently ran my fingers over it. The beautiful blues edged in gold; I remember my mother yelling at me when I was about five or six years old, telling me to put it back. I'd found it in her jewellery box – somewhere I knew I shouldn't go but did...

_Don't ever touch this Rosemarie, it's not yours and it's very special..._

"Thank you mom." As upset as I was, I knew what her giving this to me meant.

"I'm sorry Rose, for many, many things, but most of all for not being the mother you needed; you deserved so much better than you got."

I didn't know what to say... How does one respond to that? I couldn't argue with her, what she said was the truth. Saying 'Oh no mom, you were great'... Nah, we all knew that was not how it was, and I didn't feel like I could just flat out agree with her either.

"I'll let you go, you must be tired." Mom said. We stared at each other for a few seconds before she reached out and pulled me into a slightly uncomfortable hug. "I'm sorry, but always know that I love you Rose." She whispers. She quickly says goodbye to Dimitri before disappearing up the stairs. I stood shocked to my core... I couldn't remember the last time she'd told me that.

"Come on Roza." Dimitri said as he wrapped me in his arms.

It was quiet driving back to Lissa's and for the first part of the journey; I spent it looking out the window as my fingers played with my mother's gift and thinking of her last words to me.

"Do you mind not taking me home just yet?" I asked.

"Sure, is there somewhere you'd like to go?" I thought of a few places actually... The pool of water I'd found; where Adrian had found me was the first place that flashed into my head but it was getting late and I really wasn't sure I'd find it again very easily. The lake... but then Tasha's house popped into my head and I really wasn't up for that just yet. Then finally a pair of warm brown eyes flittered into my mind; eyes almost identical to the ones that were staring at me now.

"Would you mind taking me to your place?"

A beautiful soft smile made my heart beat just a little bit faster. "I'd love to." He said, reaching out and taking my left hand in his right. It didn't take long before he pulled into the driveway of his mother's house.

"Is your mom home?" I asked.

"I'm pretty sure she is, unless she's been called into work."

Dimitri told me to wait for him to open my door, he didn't want me doing anything to bust the stitches in my hands and then once more I was wrapped in his arms as we walked to the front door of his house. He unlocked the door and we quietly entered the house. A few seconds later, Olena's smiling face popped around the corner of the doorway leading into the kitchen. "Dimitri, I was wonder... Rose?" Seeing her face instantly brought tears to my eyes and within seconds she had me wrapped in her arms. "Sweetheart...?"

I don't know why, but that one word broke a dam that I thought had been well and truly emptied. The sobs were silent at first, but that didn't last long. I felt her movement as she turned her head, probably looking to Dimitri for an explanation. I was in no state to say anything yet and between the two; they took me to the large sofa in the lounge room.

"One of the boys who attacked her came to finish what he'd started." I heard Dimitri say once we were sitting down. My face was still buried in Olena's shoulder, my feet on the lounge and my bent knees resting on top of her lap.

"Oh sweetheart, are you alright?" I felt someone touch my hands, which were now feeling really, really sore. I turned my head to see Dimitri slip his hand into mine.

"She wouldn't go to the hospital so the paramedics stitched her up at the house." He said.

"Oh good Lord! What happened?"

So for the next half hour, between Dimitri, me and my snotty sobbing, the day's events were told. Fear, sorrow, anguish and finally anger – they all passed across Olena's face as we spoke.

"I can't put into words how sorry I am that you've had to deal with such horror." She said holding my hands. "I also can't tell you how proud I am... of both of you. What you did Rose, took so much courage." Then she turned to face her son. "And you... you're such a wonderful man, I'm so proud of you."

_I agree, he is wonderful... Wait... no, I'm still a little cranky with him._

After checking my hands and gently feeling the bone of my cheek, Olena was sure that nothing was broken and reassured Dimitri that getting them checked tomorrow wouldn't be an issue. They both could see that I was adamant in not going to a hospital tonight so Olena insisted I stay for dinner. I quickly rang Liss to say where I was; I could hear the smile in her voice when she told me that it was '_no problem!' _and she'd see me later_... _

"Would you like to have a shower and freshen up before we eat?" Olena asked. I hesitated for a second because a shower actually sounded fantastic but on the other hand I felt a little odd taking a shower here. "Show her where everything is son." With that... she went back into the kitchen. When I heard a little snicker beside me, I looked up to see a rather mischievous smile on his face.

"Come on." I gently grabbed onto his proffered hand and he led me upstairs. He gave me a huge fluffy towel from the linen closet and opened the bathroom door. "Let me know if you need anything, oh and the hot water takes a while to come in but when it does, it's really hot, so be careful."

"Okay." I went to walk into the room when I felt his hand on my shoulder. I turned my head to look at him and was taken aback by the apprehensive look on his face. Before I could ask him what was wrong, he turned me around to face him and he took my face in his hands. His forehead creased as his eyes narrowed in on my bruised cheek but his touch was feather light as his thumb grazed my skin.

"I'm so sorry love." He said regretfully.

"Why? You didn't put it there."

"No, but if I didn't do what..."

"Don't Dimitri, don't go there. You can't change the past; we can only learn from it and move forward."

"I'm in awe of you..." he said with a deep sigh. It looked as if he wanted to say so much more, but he soon changed his mind and leant closer to me. The instant his lips touched mine, my body broke out in goosebumps, again! I didn't realise I'd moved until I felt his arms come around my waist and pull me tight against him. Now _this _was a kiss... The softness of his lips was in stark contrast to the slight stubble that covered his face but he tasted divine.

Pulling away from each other, I had no doubt that the fire I saw in his eyes was being reflected back to him in mine... I pulled my bottom lip in between my teeth in an effort to stop the words '_take me now'_ from coming out...

"Stay here for a sec; I'll go see if I can grab some clean clothes of my sisters for you to put on." I could see he didn't want to walk away but with a chaste kiss to my forehead, he turned and walked into a room on the other side of the hall. A minute later, he came back out with a short denim skirt and t-shirt. "These should fit; Viktoria is quite tall so I didn't think any of her jeans would do..."

"These are fine Dimitri, thank you." We stood staring at each other again, both probably wanting the same thing but not knowing how to ask for it... So... Mini me squared her shoulders and took over... I took the step between us, reached up and pulled him down to me – he didn't object! I soon worked out that this was my new favourite thing to do – 'kiss Dimitri'. Of course, he was the one to pull away first.

"Go have a shower Roza..." he said in a voice that to me, sounded rather... restrained, yet sexy. I'd seen him like this a few times before and I knew he was using all of his will to hold himself back from doing so much more...

I walked backwards into the bathroom and slowly shut the door with a smile on my face, but that smile didn't last long. I turned around and immediately found myself staring into the mirror. A soft gasp escaped when I saw my face. My fingers gently touched my left cheek which was quite swollen and already colored a deep angry red. But the color that was encompassing my eye was a horrible shade of purple. _Great... A friggin black eye! _

My fingers slid down to my neck which was still red and sore. I went to lift my shirt up but I was so sore, I ended up having to sort of squirm out of it carefully but awkwardly. Once it was off, I couldn't stop the half gasp half sob that escaped me; I knew the fight between us had been hard but I couldn't help but stare at all the bruises that covered my body. I remembered how hard he'd gripped my shoulders and that's where the darkest of all the bruises were. I turned slightly to look at the back of my shoulder and saw the four distinct spots where his fingers had dug into my flesh; there were also bruises further down my back... I had no idea how they got there and _that_ thought had tears streaming down my cheeks.

"Roza?" I heard on the other side of the door. "Are you alright, love?" Finally seeing the bruises and the scratches that covered my face and body; it pulled me into a private showing of a horror movie I never wanted to see again, I couldn't stop the day's memories that flashed before my eyes. "Rose?"

I saw the door open behind me through the mirror and as soon as our eyes locked, the floodgates opened once again.

"Oh, baby..." He reached me in a split second and pulled me into his embrace. "It's alright, I've got you now."

After finally gaining control of myself, I found that we were now on the floor, with me curled up in his lap and Olena stroking my hair. I didn't even know she'd come in.

"Would you like me to stay with you Sweetie?" she asked.

"If you wouldn't mind." I mumbled through my sniffles.

"Of course not." She said with a smile. She helped me up from Dimitri's lap and reached over to the basin for a tissue.

"Call if you need me." Dimitri said to me once he stood up from the floor. With that he grabbed me behind my head with one hand and kissed my forehead before leaving the bathroom. When I looked back to Olena, I couldn't really put a word to the expression on her face. She was doing the 'one eyebrow' thing like Dimitri does and her head tilted slightly to one side with a smile pulling at her lips... and then she was silent... again.

_Man, she's good at this..._

I knew she wouldn't ask but I also knew she would eventually wrangle the answers out of me anyway, so I decided to take the bull by the horns and just get it over with...

"I love him."

"I know you do." She said finally smiling. "And he loves you; this is not something new to me."

_Of course it's not..._


	25. Chapter 20 End of a Bad, Bad Day

**A/N:**at the end...

* * *

**20 End of a bad, bad day**

Who knew it was so easy to talk from behind the comfort of a shower curtain. Thankfully Olena never brought up anything more about what had happened earlier at my mother's house but she did manage to steer the conversation to her son.

"_I knew the instant something had happened between you two." She said with a smile in her voice. "He came home in such a bad mood that Friday night... he was – __**not**__ happy."_

"_I still don't really know what made him pull away so quickly." I said quietly. "One minute he was showing me a defence move, the next we... Did he say anything to you?"_

"_Hmm, I think that's something for the two of you to discuss."_

"_Chicken..." I said laughing slightly._

"_Maybe, but ever since that night, he just got worse day by day. Normally daily workouts help him focus but every morning he'd come home and his mood was worse than when he left. Dimitri has always been a more – solitary person, he's never needed anyone else's company; until he met you."_

_Solitary...? I'd say more, stoic, but I decided to let that comment go; instead I answered the first part of her statement, something she'd brought up before. "You said that before, about him still doing training every morning, but he didn't do it with me, where did he go?"_

"_I have no idea." _

I didn't believe her...Did she realise that I could _hear_ her smiling?

After finally showering and getting dressed with Olena's help, she opened the bathroom door and ushered me outside. Before leaving the bathroom though, she asked if I was staying the night, I quickly realised just how much I didn't want to leave. As much as I love Liss and her family, I knew I'd have to relive today all over again and I was too tired and drained to do that again. I just had no desire to leave this house or the people in it. I said I'd just play it by ear, after all... tomorrow was another day.

I walked into the hall and turned to the right to see Dimitri sitting on the top step of the staircase. When he heard the door open, he turned around to see me; his eyes met mine before glancing down and briefly taking in my new attire. He stood up smiling and held his hand out to me, which I gladly accepted.

"Sorry about before." I said indicating towards the bathroom.

"Don't be," he said as he pulled me into his arms. "I was glad to be there for you. You know I always will be right?" When I didn't answer straight away, he let out a sigh and clenched his jaw as he pushed a strand of hair behind my ear. "I guess I have a lot of work to do to build you trust in me again, hey."

I wanted to say no and say that everything was fine but it wasn't. I _didn't _know that he'd always be there for me, not now anyway. I know he'd said that he loved me, but twenty four hours ago I was under the assumption that he was with someone else, an assumption that he let me believe. I thought I'd been delusional ever since I met him, a delusional teenager with an unrequited crush. If he'd asked me if I trusted him a few weeks ago, my answer would have been very different and without hesitation. I looked down to the cream patterned carpet at our feet and took a deep breath. Dimitri's fingers came under my chin and slowly brought my face up to look at him.

"You'll never know how sorry I am for making you doubt me. It's the worst thing I have ever done."

"I still don't understand why you felt you had to distance yourself from me Dimitri. I know what you said, but it doesn't make any sense to me."

"I know and I will tell you, it's up to you when. I can either tell you now or after dinner, whatever you decide, I will tell you everything." I wasn't all that hungry really and if our 'talk' upset me I thought it was best to be done on an empty stomach, so I opted for before dinner.

"We'll just be outside Mama." He said as we walked hand in hand through the kitchen towards the back door. Olena gave me an encouraging smile as she nodded her head, she knew... He led me over to the wooden bench seat that we'd sat in once before; the time he'd taken me here after the 'tree incident' and we ate Chinese...

It was early in the evening by now and after the day I'd had, I was not only physically exhausted but mentally too, another reason I just wanted to get this done now instead of later on; I didn't know how much longer I could stay awake. Dimitri sat on the edge of the bench and leant forward, putting his elbows on his knees. He looked out into the back yard, not really looking at anything in particular and took a deep breath.

"I grew up in a very different world to you Roza," he started, "...a lot I've already told you about, but coming here to America was quite the culture shock at first. I had just turned seventeen and everyone was nice to me when I first arrived, not something I was used to and I found myself... waiting for the '_real_ _them'_ to show, after all, people couldn't be _that _genuinely nice, right? After a while I managed to find _those_ types of people, the type that I was used to back home. To make a long story short, I got into some trouble and that's when Mama came down heavy; made me realise what I was doing and where my actions were leading me. I straightened myself out before I did any real damage, I threw myself into study and graduated with honours and resumed my fight training. That coupled with the training I had done in Russia, I soon found myself in the protection business. The company I worked for sent me out to guard a Russian businessman Boris Zuklov; I was the only Russian in the company so it made sense. Within a few days he offered me a permanent position, but it meant going back to Russia. I didn't know what to say at first; it meant leaving my family but the more I thought about it, the more it made me think of home and how much I missed it, so I accepted. Within two weeks, I found myself back in Russia and it was wonderful." A wistful smile appeared as the memory of his return went through his mind. "The man I worked for was a very... complex man. He was good, loving to his family, loyal to his friends but there was another side to him, one I didn't find out about until it was too late. Roughly six weeks after returning home, he reassigned me to his daughter, _Ivana_. He said that it calmed him to know that I would keep her safe."

I had watched his face as he recounted his story, different emotions passing through his eyes... His expression and voice faltered at the mention of Ivana's name...

"We grew close; we were only about a year apart in age. Soon our closeness became... more. I resisted my feelings at first, knowing it was my responsibility to keep her safe but I thought I could be both her protector and her... lover. I'd taken it upon myself to do a bit of training with her; made her to run, taught her some self defence... she was _not _a fighter. Because I was with Ivana most of the time, I wasn't aware of everything going on with her father and his business dealings but one day he called me into his office; I could see he was anxious and without giving me any real details, he told me that he'd had a deal go bad the week before and was now being threatened. He showed me a letter he'd received the day before that implied in no uncertain terms, that no-one he knew would be safe. Letters such as these in Russia meant only one thing, a price had been put on his head... and that of his family."

At this he dropped his head into his hands and scrubbed furiously at his eyes. I could see that reliving this was hard for him so I reached out and rubbed my hand up and down his back in what I hoped was a comforting gesture.

"Ignoring my demands for tighter security, the family went about life as though nothing was wrong. A gathering that had been planned before the bad deal and letter was still going ahead; it was a gathering of associates essential in Boris's line of business apparently. Because of this gathering, Ivana, her mother, her sisters and some friends all had to get dresses. We organised a trip into the capital for two days time where some top Russian designers had been lined up. It was a mammoth undertaking and I had tried to get the designers to come to the safety of the house instead but all the women wanted to leave the grounds. That Wednesday, we were in the offices of one of Russia's leading designers.

"We were at the third designer, Ivana's favourite actually, all the dresses had been chosen and ordered and we were about to take the ladies home but they were so excited to be in the capital and wanted to see more of it. I made a call to Boris and he said that it was okay; I had my reservations but... I did it anyway. I liked to see Ivana happy and she was having a great day. I didn't want to upset her, to see her stop smiling... she laughed so much that day. We'd been walking for about an hour when Ivana and one of her friends got separated from the group; my attention was diverted to Ivana's little sister at the time. When I noticed them missing I immediately went after them. By the time I found her friend there was nothing I could do, she was already gone. A note had been left on her body as to where I could find them; the people who had her were the ones after her father."

_Oh God... I knew what was coming... _

"I tried to reason with them, but they wouldn't listen so there was only one option left; I had to fight. Ten against one are not good odds, even for me. I knew this going in and I knew that I was likely not going to see another day but if it meant Ivana's safety... then it would be worth it. Surprisingly I got to the one holding her and yelled for her to run like I'd shown her, but she didn't... she wouldn't leave me. I was soon overpowered, beaten to the edge of consciousness and then they killed Ivana in front of me."

Tears fell as he went quiet... I didn't know what to say, what _could _I say? As I wrapped my arm around him, he continued.

"I was left alive to give Boris a message. I let my feelings for her cloud my judgement and that ended up costing Ivana her life." Dimitri took a deep breath and wiped at his eyes before looking back to me. "I know the situation between us is different, but at the time... when I knew that I was in love with you, the differences didn't matter. All I could think of was having my judgement clouded again and you would be the one to pay the price."

My heart broke for the pain that he'd been put through, physically, mentally and emotionally, I didn't even try to stop the tears falling.

"I'm so sorry." I whispered as I reached up and cupped a hand against his cheek.

"No..." he said as he pulled me across his lap. "I'm the one that's sorry. For letting my fear push me into doing something I shouldn't have done. I knew you were confused at training and it killed me to see the hurt in your eyes at the diner that day; I hated it, but the fear of you being hurt because of me..." He shook his head slightly as he looked down and clenched his jaw.

"And that's why you pulled away from me?"

"Yes. As I said, I know this is a different situation but at training, that Friday night, it really hit me just how strong my feeling were for you and the memories of my past that flashed through my mind in that second terrified me. I couldn't take the chance that someone else I loved could get hurt and I thought that I could protect you better by being the friend you needed but..." he closed his eyes and took a deep breath before continuing. "When I admitted to myself how _much_ I loved you, it scared me. I thought it would be easier to walk away and see you safe than take things further and lose you because I put you in danger somehow. In the end, stepping back actually put you in more danger, and that's something that I'll never forgive myself for, as well as the pain I caused you; abandoning you when you needed me the most."

"Then don't do it again." I said, my voice cracking with emotion.

"Never." He reached up with both hands and cupped my face. He leant forward, his lips barely touching mine in a soft, gentle kiss. "Never..." he whispered as he brought his lips back to me a little harder. My skin prickled and my heart rate skyrocketed as I felt his lips open against mine. Then the tip of his tongue touched me, igniting that initial spark of desire. When it brushed along my bottom lip, mine came out to meet it... that's when things really stepped up a notch. Within an instant, we were almost trying to devour each other. One of his hands meshed into my hair, pulling me into him further, his other hand went straight down to grab onto my ass cheek. Mini me was squealing and jumping up and down on the spot while ripping her clothes off.

On some level, I felt the pain in my shoulder but it didn't stop me from flinging my arms around his neck. Without breaking the kiss, I somehow lifted myself from where I was sitting and repositioned myself so that I was now straddling his lap. Dimitri obviously agreed with my new position as he pulled me in closer to him with the hand on my butt.

Oh God... I could feel him, all of him... My body felt on fire!

"Ungh..." _Oh crap! I think that just came out of me... _

His hand that had been kneading mercilessly into my ass cheek moved up under my shirt and the instant his hand touched my skin, I shuddered. Somewhere in my consciousness I heard a sound, but every one of my senses was directed firmly on the man under me...

"Ahem...hello... excuse me..."

_Yup... definitely sounds not made by me or Dimitri..._

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." I whispered as we pulled apart.

Dimitri dropped his head to my shoulder and started laughing softly. Unfortunately, I was the one facing the house and when I looked up, I saw Olena standing at the back door smiling at me. I could only hope that we were in enough darkness that she couldn't see the burning taking place on my cheeks.

"Sorry to interrupt..." _Yeah sure... _"...but dinner is ready."

"Okay Mama." Dimitri said aloud. "...we'll be there shortly."

She rolled her eyes as she turned back into the house mumbling 'yeah right'... I was so embarrassed and _so _friggin turned on.

"She did that on purpose didn't she?" I said.

"More than likely," he said looking into my eyes. "...and I would say that she had Babushka standing behind her cheering her on."

"Oh God..." I moaned and dropped my head to his shoulder. "Is cockblocking a downloadable app when you have kids or something?"

His laugh was loud and free and I suddenly felt better than I had for more than a week.

"I _really_ missed you. Come here..." Dimitri said as he brought my lips back to his. Neither of us able to oppress the moans of pleasure at finally being together like this.

"If we take too long, your mother is going to come back out here." I said against his lips after coming up for air.

"I know, but I can't really go inside just at the moment."

"Why?" I asked innocently. I was confused when all I got in reply was a raised eyebrow, but he soon let me in on the secret after he raised his hips upwards. "Oh..." I said with a snicker.

"Mmm, somehow I don't think my current state is something that is appropriate for the dinner table, especially with my grandmother present."

"I think you could be right about that... although..." I felt my face heat up as Mini me put an obscene thought into my mind.

"Although what?" Even though he was smiling, his voice was weary... with good reason I might add.

"Nothing..." I said barely holding in the giggle that was desperate to get out.

"I'm going to regret this; I know it but... please, by all means continue..."

"Well, as far as I see it, you have two options right now. We can either sit out here for God knows how long and wait for your 'situation' to alleviate itself or... we could alleviate your situation... together."

_Oh, sit the fuck down Mini me... get back into your corner..._

His face showed no change what-so-ever, but holy shit... his eyes just got a hell of a lot hotter, and _Hello_...! Mini Dimitri just cast his vote...

"Oh... God..." he mumbled as he shut his eyes. "You just had to give me that option didn't you?"

It was so good to finally see Dimitri squirm. I couldn't believe I just said that... When he opened his eyes I could see what he _wanted_ to do; now I just had to see if he'd actually do it.

"You have no idea how much I want you right at this moment Roza, I want nothing more than to show you just how much I love you, but here is not the time nor the place; you understand don't you?"

_No... yes..._

"Yeah, I do..." I grumbled, "...but that doesn't mean I have to like it." I said with a smirk.

"There's no need to rush Love, I'm not going anywhere and I know there will be many more opportunities in the future for you to make that offer again and I'm pretty sure I'll take you up on it." My insides flipped at the thought of being with Dimitri _that _way.

"I'll hold you to that... literally." and then I did something I never thought I'd be brave enough to do... I slid one hand down between us and went to grab him, causing his eyes to nearly pop out of his head.

"Careful for your hands Roza." He said holding the wrist that was between us. "Hmm, I've unleashed a monster, haven't I?"

"Maybe, it's just... I've had no desire to be this way with anyone before you. I've always thought that I'd know when that 'special someone' came into my life. I loved Mason, in my own way and maybe if things hadn't been screwed to hell and we'd gotten to know one another more, over time it may have grown into something more... I'll never know. But what I do know is that what I felt for him was the love of friendship. _You_ are that 'special someone' I've always dreamed of... I have no reservations."

The resulting grin that stretched across his face was in two words... panty melting... as if I wasn't hot enough down there without the added smile, so I brought my fingers up and grabbed either side of his mouth.

"Don't go using _that _on me," I groaned, "...otherwise we'll never make it inside."

"I have no idea what you're talking about..." he said giggling under his breath.

_Yeah right..._

=x=

Dinner was a wonderful distraction but my cheek was throbbing so much that it was giving me a headache and it only took about five minutes into the meal before my hands were so stiff that Dimitri offered to cut the rest of my meat for me; had it been anyone else to offer, I probably would have fried their ass with my now perfected death stare but I was still in too good a mood from his declarations this afternoon and our _extremely _hot make out session in the back yard. It didn't take long before I could hardly keep my eyes open, even though I was in so much pain.

After dinner, Olena got Dimitri to take me upstairs to his room. I quickly rang Liss and let her know that I was staying at Dimitri's house; I could tell that she really wanted me to come home and I wanted to, but I was just too exhausted to even move.

"So are you coming home in the morning?" She asked.

"Um, maybe closer to lunch time I think, Dimitri wants me to get my cheekbone x-rayed... even though his mother said that she didn't think anything was broken."

"Do you want me to come with you?" I smiled slightly when I heard little bit of hope in her voice.

"Yeah, I'd love that Liss, do you mind?"

"Of course I don't stupid."

"Do you want us to come pick you up on our way?"

"Um... no, that's alright. I actually have a lunch appointment to get to, so I'll just meet you there."

"An appointment? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, yeah... nothing major. So, what happened with your mother after we left? I thought she was going to explode when she found you and Dimitri... kissing." I was well aware of her changing the subject but I was just too tired to pick her up on it.

"It's a long story Liss, do you mind if I tell you all about it tomorrow? I'm about to pass out."

"Yeah okay. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Yeah... Hey Liss, is everything okay? You've been really quiet lately; I haven't overstayed my welcome have I?"

"No, no... not at all Rose. You're my sister; you could never outstay your welcome. I just have a lot on my mind, nothing for you to worry about. I'll see you in the morning, what time?"

Dimitri told me that we'd be at the hospital by 8am, so after we made plans on where to meet up, I hung up the phone.

"Here are your pain killers." Dimitri said handing me the little blue pills. I smiled and popped them into my mouth. "Have a good sleep Roza." Now that everything seemed to be out in the open with us, he seems to be taking every opportunity to kiss me.

"Ah Dimitri..." I said as he walked to the door. "Do you have something that can I sleep in?"

"Oh... um..." He stood motionless as he thought about it and then he walked over to his drawers. "It'll be a bit big on you, but it'll be comfortable." He said handing me one of his shirts. It was a thin V-neck Kiss concert shirt, old and well loved and when he saw my expression, he clarified for me. "I just can't seem to make myself throw it out..."

"Thanks."

"I'll see you in the morning." With that he bent down and softly pressed his lips to mine before walking out of the room. I took a deep breath and went to unbutton the skirt I had on but the pain killers hadn't kicked in yet... _shit! _I knew that I wasn't going to get this accomplished without assistance, Mini me knew who _she_ wanted to help and it wasn't any of the females living in the house... She sat on her lounge chair wiggling her eyebrows at me with a shit eating grin plastered on her face...

"Dimitri..." I yelled before I could chicken out... _Damn you Mini me... _I didn't know if he'd already gone downstairs but before I could take a step to the door, it opened.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Not really... Um, the pain killers haven't kicked in yet, I can't use my hands."

Realisation didn't take long to register on his face. His eyes closed softly for a second or two, just long enough for his tongue to dart out and wet his lips, but when they opened, they were completely unguarded. I could see _everything _he was thinking, and I'm pretty sure his thoughts mirrored Mini me's.

Without another word he walked through the door and closed it behind him. My hearing may have been largely impaired because of the rushing of blood in my eardrums and the thumping of my heart in my chest but I still heard the click of the lock...

_Yes... _Mini me said with a rather unladylike fist thump.

I was so drowned in the heat of his eyes; I didn't even notice him moving towards me. When he stopped a foot in front of me, his eyes scanned my face. I could see how much my battered appearance affected him, but before I could say anything to him, he bent down and kissed me... a hands in the hair, tongues tasting, leg hitching, heart thumping type of kiss... _Oh God!_

"You'll be the death of me Roza." He said resting his forehead against mine while running his hands down my arms and leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake. He took his shirt out of my hand and let it drop to the floor, before holding them gently and lifting them up to his lips. "Turn around." He really needed to stop using that soft, bedroom voice or I was going to end up a puddle on the floor at his feet and all that would be left is Mini me in all of her unharnessed, see-through negligee, hussiness... Then we'd both be well and truly fu... ah, well... maybe that's not a bad idea after all!

When I didn't move, he smirked and took my shoulders in his hands. Gently, he turned me to face the curtained window; my back now facing him. I hadn't thought it possible for my heart rate to get any faster; I was wrong. I shuddered as his fingers ghosted down my arms again, I felt him move closer behind me... He was so close, the heat from his body warmed my back and his scent was chasing away the lethargy I'd been feeling up to this point. My eyes closed as I felt his fingers at the hem of the shirt I was now wearing. I sort of jumped a bit when he touched the skin of my hips and I let out a short gust of air I'd been holding in... _Yup! Here comes Mini me..._

Embarrassingly, I squirmed as he slowly lifted my t-shirt upwards. I was pretty certain he was going as slow as he was just to tease me... maybe...

"Lift your arms." _God I love it when he's bossy._ I thought with a grin. I did what he said but flinched in pain when I tried to bring my arms up completely. I had a bit of trouble before when I had a shower but with care and a bit of help, I got undressed and redressed eventually. I heard a sound something akin to a growl from behind me and knew he could now see all the other bruises. First he pulled my arms from the short sleeves and then he stretched the neck and lifted it away without it touching my sore face. Oddly enough, I didn't feel weird or exposed standing here in a skirt and bra.

"Do you want to leave this on?" he asked slipping a finger under the strap on my right shoulder.

"No..." I said as I turned my head slightly to where his hand was to look at him from the corner of my eye. Without a word, he bent down and kissed my sore, bruised shoulder. I probably could have changed on my own faster than this, even with my beat up hands, but man... this was _so _much better. My eyes closed again as he gathered my hair and pushed it over my left shoulder. I smiled as I heard him take a breath and swallow heavily behind me, I was glad that I wasn't the only one affected by what he was doing...

I dropped my head slightly as I felt the clasp release at my back and my skin prickled as he pushed the straps from my shoulders. I was having a little trouble keeping my breathing at a somewhat normal pace... okay, maybe not normal, but it was as close to it as I could get. I didn't know what he was going to do next so when he bent down, I was taken by surprise but all he was doing was picking up his shirt from the floor. Still from behind, he lifted it over my head and it easily fell around my neck. Mini me huffed and crossed her arms across her chest before flopping down onto her lounge in disappointment.

"Arm..." he said softly. I gingerly pushed my right arm through the sleeve and then the left. I snickered as his shirt fell almost to my knees, it was huge but I was extremely happy when I was enveloped in his scent. It seemed to have an effect on Mini me too and I was in agreeance with her about never taking the shirt off again.

"Turn around Roza." He said in _that _voice... This time I moved on my own. I gasped a bit when he went down to one knee in front of me. I kept my eyes glued to his as he reached out and ran his hands up the outsides of my legs, not stopping as they slipped under the hem of my/his shirt. I felt the button of the skirt pop open and then heard each tooth of the zip click before he guided the heavy material down my legs. Mini me was smiling again...

"Lift." He said as one hand came around the back of my knee. One by one I lifted my feet out of the skirt while holding onto his shoulders. I didn't really need help balancing but holy hell... I had Dimitri on his knees in front of me; taking off my skirt... well maybe I _did _need help balancing. With grace not normally seen in a man of his height, Dimitri stood back up in front of me, skirt in hand and eyes blazing.

I think I'm officially a pile of goo...

"See something you like Comrade?" I said after watching his eyes take in the image of me in his shirt... and nothing else; the smile on his face was classic and _very _male.

"Very much so," he said honestly, "...and please stop calling me that." He glanced down once more before taking a deep breath.

"But I like it..." I remember saying the same thing to him by the lake a few weeks ago; he had a similar expression on his face then too...

"I like some of the _other _names you've given me better."

_And I bet I know which one is at the top of the list._

"Hmm..." I said looking upwards and chewing on my lip. "_Other _names? Let me think, there was... Russian jailer, warden and sir if memory serves, maybe a few mongrels and asses thrown in for good measure when the situation called for it... You'd prefer them to 'Comrade'?" He never said anything; his eyes just narrowed. "No...? Huh! I must be forgetting one. What could I be forgetting?"

He closed the distance between us shaking his head and then he bent down. Without touching me anywhere else, he ran the tip of his nose up the side of my neck and nudged the lobe of my ear before taking it into his mouth...

Oh!

Mini me was running around my head, arms flailing around her head as she screamed... 'What's my name, what's my name?'... I can't blame her really, I forgot to breathe.

"Breathe Roza." He said before pressing his lips to the spot just behind my ear.

_Goo... that's your name stupid... _

"I think I should let you get some sleep." He said as he pulled away with a knowing smirk on his face, like that was going to happen now that he'd completely woken me up. "Come on..." he said as he leant around me and started to pull down the bed covers. I got in and smiled; if I thought his t-shirt smelt good, it had nothing compared to his bed... I was officially in heaven.

"Where are you sleeping?" I asked once the ability to speak returned, I felt bad for kicking him out of his bed. He sat down beside me and picked up the ends of my hair in his fingers.

"I'll be down on the lounge if you need me for anything." _So far away..._ "I love you Roza."

"I love you too Comrade, and thank you – for everything." He gave me one more kiss before walking out of the room. I don't know how long I laid there before finally succumbing to sleep but it was pitch black when I woke up next.

"NO!..." I yelled as I sat up in the bed panting. It only took a few seconds for my eyes to become accustomed to the dark, that's then I noticed movement at the end of the bed. I was disorientated about where I was, my breathing was rapid because of the nightmare I'd just had and seeing something move in the dark scared the absolute shit out of me... I screamed like a banshee...

"Roza! It's me... "

"Dimitri? Holy shit..." I said panting.

"I'm sorry love." He said as he walked closer.

"What are you doing here?"

"You've been dreaming for a while but I wasn't sure if I should wake you; I was hoping that it would end soon, are you alright?" He asked as he wiped an errant tear from my cheek.

"No..." I whispered. "Hold me."

He gave a quick nod and climbed into the bed beside me, enveloping me in his massive embrace. I felt so safe here.

I don't know how much longer I slept for, but when I woke up next, the sun was shining and I was still wrapped safely in Dimitri's arms. Of course he knew the instant I resurfaced.

"Good morning sunshine..." he said with a kiss to the top of my head.

"Sunshine... I think you have me confused with someone else."

He pulled back a little and looked down at me with one eyebrow raised and let out a gasp. "Oh... you're right. I'm sorry; I thought you were my _other _girlfriend..."

_GIRLFRIEND!... _All I could do was stare at him with bug eyes. Somewhere in my brain it occurred to me that I should have been alarmed with a more concerning word in that sentence like... 'other', but all Mini me and I heard was 'girlfriend'...

"Girlfriend?" I said in shock.

"If you'll have me." He said with a tentative smile. "I know I have a lot to make up for Roza and I know I've already told you that I love you, but... Will you be my girlfriend?"

_Wake the fuck up Mini me; get up off the floor..._

"Yes..." I breathed. I was rewarded with a smile that made my heart thump before he started to lean down for a kiss, but I stopped him with a hand against my lips. "No, morning breath..."

=x=

"See, I told you nothing was broken." I said to Dimitri.

"I know, but I feel better knowing that for a fact. Plus, we had to get those photo's taken and it was better it was done here."

Apparently after I'd first gone to sleep last night, Dimitri had gone downstairs and called Detective Morris, telling her about all the bruising on my body from the fight with Jesse. She wanted to come over and get photos then and there but relented when he told her that I was asleep and he was taking me to the hospital for X-rays the next morning. I was a little pissed when he first told me that she wanted photos taken but between his reasoning that they'd ensure Jesse got what was coming to him and Lissa's puppy dog eyes, I relented.

"So what's this appointment that so important Liss?" I asked as we walked out towards the hospital car park.

"Um... just with dad – about college." She looked nervous, something that Liss almost never was.

"Weren't you talking to him about that last week?"

"Ah yeah, we just have differing opinions that's all, I'll work it all out soon."

"Why don't you take a year off like me, we could travel." I could tell that something else was going on here, something other than college problems. She was due to start college in just over five weeks, Liss was _never _this undecided about anything, especially about being a doctor.

"That would be good, but I think dad's right. If I delay, even for a year, it could seriously hurt my chances of getting into the college that I want." She was saying all the right things but I knew her too well; I knew she was hiding something.

"Liss, is there something else wrong? You haven't been yourself all week."

"No, nothing's wrong, I've just been stressed over a few things and then yesterday sort of... threw me a bit." I could certainly relate to that last part. "Listen, I really need to go, I'll see you back home in a few hours?"

"Yeah, drive carefully." I said as I hugged her goodbye. I knew in my bones that something wasn't right with her, but I couldn't force her to talk to me. As she drove out of her spot, Dimitri wrapped an arm around my shoulders and led me to his Jeep.

"She seems like she's hiding something." He commented.

"Yeah, I know..." At least it wasn't just me...

We called into Guardian Security so that Dimitri could tell my mother that he'd be taking the next couple of days off. I tried to tell him that it wasn't necessary but he wouldn't hear of it. My mother was unusually reserved yet accommodating when we got there, after that he took me to the local mall.

"Want a coffee before we start?"

"Start what?" I asked as I tried to figure out the cause of his grin.

"You want a coffee or not?" He asked as his grin stretched into a full out smile. I dreaded what he had in mind so I thought the coffee would give me a chance to find out what he was up to.

"Sure, lead the way master."

He chuckled as he shook his head and led me into Starbucks. As we walked in, my eyes panned across the room and landed on a sight I never thought I'd see.

"What the hell?" I said as I stopped where I stood.

"Rose?" I didn't take my eyes off the sight in front of me but nodded my head in that direction... "What...?"

"That's what I'd like to know, so much for having to meet her father."

Seeing Lissa sitting at the table with Nat was confusing enough, but seeing her hand in his was... shocking to say the least.

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Hi Everyone, Sorry for the delay in updating. I haven't been well lately and have been waiting on a couple of operations. Well Saturday came and my body decided it wasn't going to wait anymore. On Sunday morning, I was taken in for emergency surgery... All good now though, a little sore and sorry for myself, but well on the mend. So I'm a little behind now because of all the drama, drama, drama... so please be patient for the next couple of chapters while I play catch up! :-)

Thank you so much for all of your reviews, I love how you've all grown to love this story as much as I have. I can't wait to get to the next one I have planned. A couple of you have already read the initial outline and 1/2 chapter and you've given me some great feed back. MaxieMoose, I can't wait to start working with you on this... (so if I make and Aussie boo-boos's, ya'll can blame her! hehehehe) I did the 'ya'll' thing alright didn't I? :-)

Anyway, thanks for reading... Sandy.


	26. Dimitri A Lesson In Self Control Otake 5

**Please read... I'll be quick... :D**

**Okay... I know I said that Dimitri's chapters would show things that Rose isn't privy to, but after recent events I felt it prudent that his thoughts and feelings were told. **

**See... short and sweet. LOL! Sandy**

**I reiterate... _This chapter has a lot in it from the previous 3 chapters_... It just shows a side to Dimitri that I haven't previously shown you yet (and a little bit of info at the end). **

* * *

**Dimitri – A lesson in Self-Control Outtake 5**

This last week without her had been more than I could stand. I thought by stepping back it would make things easier; I couldn't have been more wrong. All week I felt... off. I couldn't say exactly what was going on with me; I just knew that something was missing. Of course I didn't need to be a rocket scientist to know what or _who _it was that was missing, it just took a week for me to own up to the fact that I couldn't stay away from her anymore, so I was going to fix things once and for all. I was going to tell her just how much of an idiot I'd been and I was going to be the man I should have been right from the start. I was going to tell her just how much I loved her.

I picked up my phone and scrolled through my contact list. Just seeing her name on the screen calmed me. It shouldn't have surprised me when her phone just kept ringing and ringing; I don't know why I expected her to answer. I'd hurt her; I knew that. I was about to end the call when I heard the line pick up and I waited for the message to start, but it didn't... Instead I got a puffed 'Hello'...

The instant I heard her voice that 'off' feeling inside of me dissipated completely, as I knew it would.

"Hi Rose."

"Oh hey, what can I do for you?" She was a little short in her reply, but it was better than I expected. I needed to see her, I needed her to say 'yes' to meeting me but I didn't want to push her either... I had to be careful of what to say so I asked if she wanted to train. When she said she was already out jogging, I was left scrambling to think of another way to see her. When she said that she was getting some of her things from her parent's house, I jumped at the opportunity. I was more than happy when she said that I could pick her up and for the life of me, I couldn't keep the relief out of my voice. As I ended the call, a knock sounded at my bedroom door.

"Can I come in?" My mother's voice came from the other side.

"Da Mama."

"Dobroye utro Dimka."

"Dobroye utro Mama."

"Are you busy today son?"

"Actually I am Mama; I was just about to go have a shower." She nodded slowly and I could see she wanted to know what I was doing, but being the woman she was, she wouldn't ask. "I'm going to talk to Rose; I just got off the phone with her."

I didn't miss the little smile that pulled at her mouth. "Oh, alright then, say hello to her for me then. It's been a while since I have spoken to her. I'll see you later then..." _Sneaky woman... _With that she left my room. I quickly showered and changed before grabbing my keys and cell and ran out of the house; I'm fairly certain that I heard my mother say 'nakonyets' behind me but I didn't have time to ask for clarification.

It took a good ten minutes to make my way over to Rose's parent's house; I hadn't been there before and was glad for my GPS on my cell phone. I parked out by the curb and then made my way to the front gate before walking up the path to the front steps. That's when I heard it. I heard someone yelling and it didn't sound female. I wasn't sure that it had even come from this house at first then I heard banging and then... "ARGH... _FUCK! _YOU_ BITCH!" _Definitely here and definitely _not _Rose... I took off up the path and leapt up the stairs in one go. I had too much momentum and slammed into the door.

"ROSE!" I yelled. I fumbled at the handle hoping that it wasn't locked but all I managed to do was get in my own way in my haste to get it open. "ROSE, answer me!" I yelled as I finally entered the house. For a second I thought that I _had_ heard wrong; everything was quiet as I stood in the open entry way of the house. Looking around I couldn't see any sign of struggle... "Rose?"

Listening hard I thought I could hear slight sounds above me but I wasn't sure over the loud whooshing of blood in my ears. Then I heard a loud thump... I took off running over to the stairs, taking them three at a time. Half way up I heard the sound of fists hitting flesh and my blood ran cold. Going on pure adrenaline and instinct, I turned to the sound and ran into the room on my left. What I saw rooted me to the spot... Rose was laying into a guy on the floor. I quickly realised that he was the one from the movie cinemas that I later found out to be Jesse.

"ROSE... _Stop_!" I yelled as I ran towards her. I could see she hadn't heard me; her whole awareness was centred entirely on the guy beneath her. As her fists drove into his now bloody face, the most rage fuelled scream came from her mouth. I tried to grab at her shoulders while avoiding her flying arms, her knee came up and rammed into his groin but at this point, I'm pretty sure he didn't feel it. I had a moment of worry that she'd actually killed him but that worry soon eroded into pleasure.

I finally got a hold of her but I couldn't dislodge her at first so I got a better grip and pulled her into my chest. She fought wildly against me, screaming in rage; arms and legs swinging and kicking madly. It took a few seconds for the screaming to morph into words when she realised that someone had a hold of her. I hadn't had time to panic over exactly what I was seeing; adrenaline was keeping my mind on track.

"Rose! Snap out of this! This isn't you, come back to me Roza..." I felt the first signs of her rage slip at the name only I called her. "Shhh, you can stop." She still fought to get back to Jesse but I knew the intense rage was now gone. I needed her to look at me; to focus on something other than the object of her rage... The look in her eyes when I turned her face to mine broke my heart but not as much as seeing the evidence of where he'd hit her cheek. "It's alright, you're alright. Keep looking at me."

I was only seconds away from losing it and finishing off the waste of oxygen on the floor; it was only the sight of her eyes quickly filling with tears that kept me in place. I could see she was a hairs breath away from losing it herself so I kept telling her that she was alright, that she was safe.

She kept mumbling incoherently so I pulled her into me tightly and within seconds I was trying to hold the girl I loved, together. I moved slightly to the side and pulled my cell from my back pocket. After what happened at the movies, I'd put the phone number of the lead detective into my phone. I scrolled down the list of names and pressed 'send' as I kept a hold of Rose.

"Detective Morris." Came the abrupt voice on the other end of the line.

"It's Dimitri Belikov. He came back; he tried to rape her..." I yelled over the sound of Rose's sobs.

"Calm down. Belikov?" There was a few seconds of silence as she tried to place my name. "Where are you? Is she alright?"

"She's at her mother's house; you need to get an ambulance."

"Oh God... What did he do?"

"It's not for her. Hurry." I shut the phone and continued to hold her as I kept an eye on Jesse. I could see that he was still breathing – unfortunately, but if he moved, I'd make sure he never did again. I also knew she would want her best friend here so I opened my phone again and called Lissa. I didn't know what to say to her so I was more than happy when Adrian answered it instead.

"Adrian? It's Dimitri."

"What do you want?" he said abruptly.

"Listen, Jesse attacked Rose at her mother's house. I'm with her now but I think she'd like Lissa to be here, can you get her here?"

"Fuck... Is she...?"

"She's... okay." I interrupted, I couldn't say that she was fine; she wasn't, but I needed him to know that the worst had not happened.

"We'll be there in ten." With that the line went dead. It was only a few minutes later that she calmed down enough to speak but even then I think it was more to herself than to me. When I felt her curl into me more and grip my shirt tighter, I pulled one of my hands away from her body and gently touched her bruised face. I asked her if she was alright but there was no reply, she was in shock. I heard the sirens a few minutes later but Rose only moved when she heard them coming upstairs.

When the two detectives came up, both sets of eyes went straight to Rose.

"Is she alright?" Morris asked me. More police followed close behind them and I pointed to where Jesse still laid.

"I think so. She's in shock."

"Have you contacted her mother yet?" Morris asked.

"No." I'd completely forgotten about Janine. Morris looked to her partner who then took out her phone and walked away.

The other police officers had gone in before the paramedics and looked up at Rose in disbelief. I guess they didn't expect someone her size to have done so much damage. Morris wanted to know what went on but all I wanted to do was get Rose away from here. Before letting me move her, Ivanson scraped under her fingernails. I was still holding her shirt closed around her front so I asked for someone to get a shirt for her; she'd been violated enough today without being exposed in front of a house full of cops too. After a little coaxing and promises that no-one else would touch her, I finally got a clean shirt on her.

I let her know that I was going to take her downstairs before moving her and it didn't escape my notice how much lighter she was compared to when I'd last held her in my arms; another thing that was on my shoulders. But time to berate myself for my failings would have to wait; I had to look after Rose. When I tried to put her onto the countertop in the kitchen, she panicked. The look on her face broke my heart just a little more... I couldn't believe what I'd done to her.

I had to promise her that I wouldn't leave her but she kept one hand entwined in my shirt anyway. Her silence was really worrying me, she just kept looking at me with frightened, wild eyes and I couldn't help but plead with her to talk to me.

The sound of her scratchy voice made my anger surface once more; the red marks around her throat spoke volumes about what she'd just been through. But when she told me that it was _my_ voice telling her how to fight him off, I didn't know what to say. I was so proud of her strength at such a terrifying time, so that's what I told her.

"I'm so proud of you. So, so proud." I said as I held her face in my hands. I wanted so much to kiss her at that moment, to tell her how much I loved her, but this was not the time. I told her that I'd called Lissa and then grabbed a towel and wet it. I watched her closely as I gently washed as much blood away from her hands as I could but there were some fairly deep cuts that were going to need stitching. When she turned her head to the side, I looked up and saw her eyes go blank... I panicked a bit... I couldn't let her retreat into herself, not after she'd fought so hard to get to where she was now. I wouldn't let that mongrel take more of her life than he already had, so I said the first thing that came to mind. I was more than relieved when I saw her come back to me.

"I was scared Dimitri." She said simply. Those four words were like knives in my gut.

"I know you were, but you were strong when you needed to be. You'll get through this." I could tell by her face that she didn't believe me but I didn't have time to say anything else before I heard her mother come into the house.

I'd worked for Janine long enough now to know her fairly well and as hard as she tried, I could tell that she wasn't as composed as she tried to portray. I'd taken a step back so that she could comfort her daughter, but she didn't. She looked at Rose's hands and wanted to know what happened. I could tell Rose wasn't in the right mind to do so, so I told her what I knew.

The comparison between her and my mother was staggering. If it had been one of my sisters sitting here, my mother would be like a bear on a rampage and on a quest for blood. The only sign I saw that Janine was in fear of losing her cool was when the paramedics brought Jesse downstairs, but still no comfort was directed to her daughter.

When the police asked for a statement, I moved closer to her. I knew it was going to be hard for her and I wanted her to know that I wouldn't let this become a repeat of the last time they questioned her. She held up fairly well; when I saw her start to get worked up, I talked her through it. That's when she looked to me for strength, strength I was only too happy to give her. The rest of her account of what happened, she told to me. When she told me that she'd heard my voice for a second time, my heart swelled; maybe there was hope for us yet, maybe she could forgive my idiocy. Hearing what she went through was so hard, if only I'd been here sooner... I could have saved her from having to go through this again. She got to the end but she started getting too worked up so I pulled her into me and took over the story.

When Rose said that Jesse had been following her and waiting for her to leave the house alone, I had to swallow the impulse to drive to the hospital and finish the prick off once and for all. But for the first time since I started, I was thankful for my need to follow her on her morning runs instead of feeling like a stalker.

When Lissa and Adrian arrived, she gave Rose the comfort that I thought Janine would and should have given; I was happy that she was here. I was surprised at the relationship between Adrian and the other detective but not as surprised as Rose apparently. After the day's events, I think that was the last straw, she just couldn't take any more surprises and she started mumbling and breathing way too fast. I reached out to her just as she fell to the side in a dead faint.

=x=

Liss started crying and screaming to know what was wrong with her best friend, her mother instinctively reached out but I'd already scooped her into my arms. I took her into the lounge room and laid her on the sofa. It took a while for her to come around and I used the whole time to think of an apology to say to her; I had a lot to be sorry about after all. Her mother tried to rouse her as did Lissa but when I felt her hand twitch in mine... I must admit that I was more than happy that it was my voice that seemed to bring her around.

When her eyes finally opened, I could barely contain my emotions.

"Hey." She said softly.

"Hey yourself, are you feeling better?"

"Than...?" _That's my girl... _I was glad that the emotion of the moment produced a chuckle rather than tears of happiness though. I gave her a drink of water and helped her drink it. Looking into her eyes, I couldn't believe that I ever thought it was a good idea to stay away from her.

"Where have you been?" She asked me. I knew what she meant; I just wanted more time before having to delve into it all. When she asked if she'd done something wrong, I knew I had no choice but to lay my cards on the table. I would have preferred to do this in a much more private setting, especially considering her mother and friends were mere meters away. I glanced up to make sure that no-one was on their way into the room before speaking.

I could see that she didn't understand what I was trying to tell her, all the scenario's I'd played out in my head were useless.

"I was getting too close, you didn't need that." _Or so I thought. _

"I needed _you._" The pain in her voice almost did me in. I knew the subject of Tasha would come up and as much as I wanted to spare her anymore pain, I had to be honest with her. With a quick look to make sure we were still alone, I told her in so many words that I had considered a relationship with Tasha but realised immediately that it would have been based on a lie, that she would always have been my second choice. That's when I could see the hope in her eyes... it was time.

"...my heart belongs to someone else."

"Who?" she breathed. _She knew..._

"Hmm, this most fascinating woman. She's funny, brave, _incredibly_ sexy, brave, feisty, brave..." _here goes..._ "...and the love of my life."

She pulled in a gasp of air but didn't release it; I watched her face as she waited for me to say the words.

"You Rose... I'm talking about you." Along with the release of air she's been holding, tears fell down her cheeks, I only hoped they were tears of joy but I braced myself for the other reason. She didn't move or say anything... "Nothing to say?"

"Say it again." She whispered. JOY! It was joy...

"I love you Roza." _Oh God that felt good._ More tears and a little sob of relief.

"Again..."

"I love you, my beautiful Roza."

When she asked me to say it again, I decided to show her instead. I bent down to her and watched as her tongue licked her lips. _That's a good sign. _I thought to myself. "Let me show you."

I felt her tremble as our lips touched. The feeling that I get every time I touch her skin didn't disappoint. "Breathe Roza."

I smiled when she pulled in a deep breath and then I did what I'd wanted to do for weeks. I kissed her, _really _kissed her. Within seconds her hands moved up my sides and gripped into my hair. I took that as a green light for more. I traced my tongue over her lips, and she opened her mouth to mine. Tasting her for the first time was... mind-blowing. When she gripped my hair tighter and deepened the kiss, I was lost. I thought she owned my heart before, but that was nothing compared to the feeling I got when I felt her give herself to me willingly. If this is what kissing her did to me, I couldn't fathom what would happen when our relationship progressed further... _God I hope she wants to go further. _I had to pull away, if I didn't, I was sure that I would end up doing something that her mother would shoot me for.

"Wow..." she said panting...

"Yeah..."

"I love you too." It was the first time she'd said the words and my heart did a back-flip.

"I know you do. I've wanted to do that for a _very _long time." _And I'll be doing that every chance I get from here on out. _

"Don't let me stop you from continuing." She said shyly.

"God, I've missed you." _And I want you sooo much. _This time I couldn't keep it soft, I didn't know how much longer I would have her in my arms so I was damned sure to make the most of every second I had.

When we heard someone clear their throat above us, I expected to raise my eyes and be met with a fist... It was worse. The look in Janine's eyes was set to kill, I was just lucky that there were still police in the house otherwise I think she would have. This was not how I wanted any of this to go down. I wanted to talk to Rose privately, tell her how much I loved her and how sorry I was for the pain I'd caused her and then I wanted to talk to her mother; tell her the truth, but the actions of one selfish prick screwed up something that should have been a much more private matter.

After the day Rose had just gone through, she didn't want to deal with her mother just now and while I did sympathise with her, I knew it would only make matters worse; we had to stay and explain. Now that I could, I couldn't help but touch her again and when her tongue came out and licked against my fingers... parts of me reacted more than others. I had to pull myself together.

She'd had a couple of little break downs since the attack but her calmness in-between those moments worried me a little; I had to make sure that I was with her when the shock wore off and the reality of what happened finally sank in.

A few hours later, everyone was finally leaving. Rose had steadfastly refused to go to the hospital and be checked out so I had one of the paramedics do it here and then stitch her hands.

When Janine came back into the kitchen after seeing the detectives out, I knew what I had to do. She wasn't very happy when Rose told her she wasn't staying and her dismissal of Rose's friends was... straight to the point. Then for the first time today, we were alone. Alone in the sense that even though Janine was in the house, I could finally say what I'd been dying to say since I woke up this morning... _'I'm sorry'_. But in true Rose fashion, she wouldn't hear of it; I think she was happy that I'd said the words though.

I can't say that I didn't see her reasoning; she _did _save herself and I'm not stupid, I know how much that can mean to a victim of assault but it doesn't make me feel any better – it never will.

When her mother came back downstairs, I expected things to be – tense, I just didn't expect it to come from Rose. At first I tried to calm her down so that we could talk things through like adults; something my mother always taught me to do. The more she yelled, the more she let out the years of emotional and physical neglect – the less respect I had for the woman I'd been working for.

I used to think that I could see where Rose got her strength from; I was wrong. As it turned out, the Janine I knew was really a scared, lonely and bitter woman who wore a mask of strength like a well fitted suit. My Roza was _nothing _like her mother. _My _Roza was the strongest person I've ever met, other than my own mother, but the only mask she wore was one of honesty. I would be in awe of her for the rest of my existence.

It didn't take long for things to go from bad to worse, I knew she couldn't handle too much more today and that's when she started hyperventilating again. My heart felt every pain hers did as I held her body against mine; I was only just able to pull her through it. I knew I had her back in my life when she said it... _that _word, 'master'. If only she knew what it did to me to hear her say that word.

When we became aware of our surroundings again, we noticed we were alone... it was time to go. We found her mother, to let her know we were leaving and for the first time Janine became somewhat the mother she always should have been. I could tell by Roza's face that the gift her mother gave her was something very special, I didn't know the full meaning behind it, but I'm sure she'll tell me when she's ready. I've seen Nazars before back home, I knew their traditional meaning but there was obviously more here than I knew.

We ended up going back to my house at Roza's request, something that pleased me no end and as much as I loved how my mother welcomed Rose with open arms, it pained me to know that it should have been Janine doing this. Hopefully one day, the day would come when Rose and Janine would have more but until then, I knew my mother would be there for her.

After getting through yet another telling of the day's events, Mama suggested Rose have a shower; something that I knew would make her feel better, even if only a bit, but my mother was as subtle as a freight train when she wanted to be. After telling me to show Rose where everything was, she turned to go back into the kitchen, but not before smiling and winking at me. _She knew..._

Ever since that night at training, I've been distracted... even then I was aware of this fact, but now I knew that I'd been too distracted to see that I had told my mother everything she wanted to know about my feelings for Rose without saying a word. Belikov women are the craftiest, sneakiest females on the planet. I shouldn't be surprised really, after all, she'd learnt from the best; her mother!

I gave Roza a towel, I gave her some clean clothes and then I tried to give her more apologies but the only thing she wanted from me was – me, and of that, the well ran deep. I finally gained enough control of myself to walk away and let her shower – alone... When she shut the door to the bathroom with a smile I finally relaxed. I turned around and stood with my back against the door, willing myself to give her some privacy and walk downstairs, it just took a little 'internal dialogue; to accomplish that task. That's the only reason I was still close enough to hear her sobs... I tried to get her to open the door for me, I didn't want to walk in if she was naked and I'd been wrong in what I'd heard. But she didn't answer me so I took the risk and opened the bathroom door. When I looked into her eyes, I knew another break was imminent. I crossed the width of the room in a second and held her in my arms as she yelled, cried, screamed and clawed in an effort to escape her pain.

It didn't take long before I heard footsteps running up the stairs and when my mother came to the door with two of my sisters behind her, I was grateful. I could see that they were deeply affected by what Rose was going through and I knew that they too were now part of her support system. It was probably ten or fifteen minutes before I felt her start to settle in my arms, Mama and I kept talking to her the whole time, even though I wasn't sure she really heard us. Once she calmed down I knew I had to leave, I didn't want to though, so I was glad that Mama was here to help her. I couldn't leave without kissing her one last time. I had full intentions of going downstairs but when I reached the top; I couldn't make my feet go any further... so that's where I stayed.

When I heard the bathroom door open, I turned around and was met with eyes that centred my world... then I looked down. I'm a man and the sight before me was exquisite. This day was the worst rollercoaster of a day I'd ever been on; worse than the worst day back in Russia and it didn't seem that it was going to get better anytime soon. When I told her that I'd always be there for her, I didn't miss the look that passed across her face. She tried to hide it, but I was trained to read peoples expressions... in my line of business, it was a tool that could potentially save your life.

Sitting there on the step, my mind wandered and I could see just how deeply my best intentions had hurt her. I guess the old saying was true; that the road to Hell was paved in good intentions... It was also then that I knew I would spend every chance I got to heal that hurt, and to do that, I had to tell her the whole truth. It wasn't something that I ever wanted to think about, let alone talk about but if there was any chance of me healing the hurt I caused, telling Rose the truth about what happened in Russia was something that needed to be done.

And that's how we ended up in my back yard. I took a moment to collect my thoughts, drew in a deep breath and started at the beginning. Remembering Ivana and the happy times we shared didn't hurt as much as it used to... but remembering lying on the ground, unable to move while the woman I thought I was falling in love with bled out in front of me still hurt just as much as the day it happened. They shot her in the stomach three times – it took her less than a minute for the light in her eyes to fade into the ether...

_Tell your boss that this is just a warning. He has twenty-four hours to pay what he owes. The twelve year old is next! _Was the warning whispered in my ear before I fell into the abyss of unconsciousness.

That pain, the knowledge that my failure resulted in someone's death, was something that I would have to live with for the rest of my life but now everything was out in the open, Roza knew.

She wanted answers, I gave them to her honestly and freely and in return she forgave me on the promise that I would never leave her again... and I would die before I did. What happened next was... what my dreams were made of, only better. How long had I dreamt of holding her, kissing her, touching her like this? My body disconnected from my brain and it took control; it was going to have everything it had craved for so long... Roza's scent permeated to my very core, each breath I drew into my lungs pulled me further and further in to oblivion. There was only one thing that could stop it now and she didn't disappoint!

As my heart thumped in my chest, I couldn't help but laugh at Roza's growled frustration at constantly being interrupted. Not that I was enjoying it either but I still knew that I wanted more for our first time than something quick in my backyard, no matter how much my body was trying to change my mind. Knowing my mother as I do, I was pretty sure that she'd spoken at length about my situation to my grandmother and was just waiting for the opportunity to have some fun at my expense.

Every joke Roza cracked, lit up my world one brilliant white watt at a time... It wasn't until now that I realised just how dark my life had been since walking away from her. I relished the chance to show her just how much she affected me and the look on her face was priceless. When she blushed, I knew the thoughts going through her mind were less than pure and I was too turned on to _not_ know what those thoughts were.

"...by all means, continue..." I said expectantly.

The only thing I heard in reply was... "...or we could alleviate your situation... together."

_Oh God... _Sitting there on the bench in my backyard while the scent and taste of the woman of my dreams still flooding my system and then having her say those words while straddling my lap, well... I can honestly say that I used more self-control than I ever thought I was capable of. I may have been able to stop my previously traitorous hands from moving to where they wanted to go but the only part of my body that had its own brain made sure that his opinion on the matter was known.

_Turn her down, turn her down, turn her down... _I chanted over and over in my head, and I did – somehow.

But when she went to grab me, my resolve nearly flew out the window. I knew damn well what happened every time her skin came in contact with mine, feeling that feeling down there... I knew it would result in me having no free will left; I would do whatever she wanted. Saying that, I must admit that I was eager to get to know _this_ side of Rose.

We finally made it to the dinner table, even if we did arrive a little later than the other people seated. As the minutes rolled on, Roza got tireder and tireder, I could also see that she was in pain and it was only getting worse. So, as soon as she said she was full, I took her upstairs so that she could sleep. She called Lissa to let her know what was going on and then I gave her, her pain medication. Once they were down, I kissed her good night and made my way back to the door. When she asked for something to sleep in, I had to think for a second and when my eyes landed on my chest of draws on the far wall, the only thing that flashed into my head was my favourite t-shirt. It probably wasn't the smartest move I've ever made; just thinking about her in _that _shirt had my heart skip a beat. I quickly made my way out of the bedroom... finally, and away from temptation. I'd only made it a step or two down when I heard her call out my name.

_Be strong, be strong..._

I opened the door and saw her standing in pretty much the same position I left her in. "Are you alright?" I asked.

"Not really... Um, the pain killers haven't kicked in yet, I can't use my hands."

I looked at the shirt she held up in her hand and knew exactly what she was asking. She didn't ask for my mother to come help her dress... no, she wanted me to help her. _Oh God!_

_Be strong, be strong... Mother downstairs... Grandmother downstairs... _

Disjointed images of Rose in different stages of undress intermingled with images of my hands and mouth on various parts of her body flashed though my mind in milliseconds. I closed my eyes in an effort to reign in my self control, I wanted nothing more than to rid her of every stitch currently on her, time would soon tell if I was strong enough to redress her any time soon. I swallowed my desire and opened my eyes before walking into my room. Our eyes locked onto each other and without too much thought, I turned the lock on the door; I didn't want someone to just walk in... This was probably not one of my best moves now that I think about it... I could only hope that my mother's 'downloadable app' would save me if I couldn't stop myself...

I soon found myself standing in front of her, the air around us crackled in anticipation. Seeing the bruises on her face sobered me up somewhat and kept me from doing more than she was ready for, so I did the next best thing. I kissed her, again. But this time, I made sure that everything I was feeling right now went into that kiss. I pulled away when I knew my self control was about to crash and burn.

I took my shirt out of her hand and let it drop to the floor; hopefully I'd have enough strength to pick it up again.

"Turn around." I told her. I most certainly could _not _do this if she was facing me. She didn't move but hearing her breathing elevate a bit more as the skin of her cheeks darkened, I knew it wasn't out of fear or mistrust, so I turned her myself. My breathing soon matched hers when my fingers finally touched the skin at her back. The feeling went straight to my groin...

I slowly lifted her shirt, watching the more bruises appear as I went higher and higher. There were a few reasons why I was taking this act so torturously slow. The main reason was that I didn't want to hurt her; I knew she was sore all over. Then there was the fact that I wanted to savour the moment for as long as I could, me being a masochist and all... but I also knew that if I went any faster, memories of recent fantasies where rushed undressing had occurred would soon turn into reality.

Seeing the all of the bruises on her back soon distracted me... Calculations of how long it would take to drive to the hospital and finish that bastard off went through my mind as well as the many different ways I could end his pitiful existence; and with his injuries no-one would suspect anything untoward had happened... I reached out to touch the four little finger print sized bruises on her right shoulder but stopped myself, instead I focused on the strap of her bra.

"Do you want to leave this on?" I asked her. When she turned her head, her eyes brought me out of my murderous thoughts and I was once more lost in her. In yet another long line of stupid moves made in the last little while, I bent down and kissed her shoulder, my left hand swept her hair away and I took a deep breath...

_STUPID!_ _PULL BACK! PULL BACK! Look at the bruises... _

The sound of her elevated breathing and her scent once more had my brain screaming to have more than I knew she was ready for. I focused on the clasp at her back and then slowly lowered the straps down her arms.

_Mother downstairs, Babushka downstairs... Babushka... think of your grandmother..._

I tore my eyes away from her now naked torso and looked at my shirt on the floor... _Pick it up Dimitri... Pick it up and put it on her... _As I bent down to get my now least favourite shirt off the floor, I happened to catch sight of something I really didn't need to see. I could tell she was just as affected as I was and she made no attempt to hide her naked chest from me... _PICK UP THE BLOODY SHIRT DIMITRI! _

I let the shirt fall over her head and then gently manoeuvred her arms into the sleeves and once the rest of the material fell almost to her knees, I almost staggered in relief that I'd kept control of myself. I knew I wouldn't be able to do that again...

"Turn around Roza." I couldn't believe my voice came out so seemingly unaffected. This time she moved on her own volition. I kept my eyes on hers as I bent down to rid her of the denim skirt.

_Keep your eyes where they are... you're nearly finished. _I knew if I let my eyes lower; if I watched myself lower it down her beautiful legs, I'd lose it.

My traitorous hands were back with minds of their own... They slowly made their way upwards and feeling her soft skin was divine and maddening at the same time. Then I was standing in front of her, amazed that I'd kept myself from making all my fantasies come true. I finally gave myself permission to look down and seeing her in _that _shirt was better than I ever thought possible; it was now my favourite shirt again.

Then, if only she knew the mammoth effort in self control that I'd just gone through, she wouldn't have teased me with her nicknames, so I thought a little payback was warranted. I moved closer to her and slowly brought my nose up her neck, her scent was intoxicating and before I knew what I'd done; her ear was in my mouth... Her lack of breathing brought me out of my haze and I was able to pull back but I did enjoy seeing the look on her face. I finally got her into bed where I thought would allow me room to breathe, I was wrong. Finally I had a real image of her exactly where I wanted her. My traitorous hands were back, twisting themselves in her hair... I had to leave, now!

"I love you Roza."

"I love you too Comrade, and thank you – for everything."

Everything... _You are my everything Roza..._

I walked outside and stood at the door for a little while, making sure that I was close if she called out again. When I was sure that she wasn't going to, I made my way downstairs.

"Took you long enough." My sister Sonya said smiling.

"Stop teasing your brother." My mother's said with the same grin plastered on her face.

"She needed help getting dressed." I explained. My mother's eyebrows nearly reached her hairline in surprise. "Nothing happened, I was a gentleman..."

"We can see nothing happened..." Karolina mumbled from the sofa causing her and Sonja to giggle like teenagers.

"Cows..." I growled as I walked away adjusting myself; that only made them laugh even more. Looking back over my shoulder, I was annoyed to see my mother barely containing herself with her hands over her mouth. God how I wished to have at least one other male here sometimes...

I went into the kitchen, away from the cackling females and called Detective Morris. I knew she wasn't aware of all the other bruises that Roza had. She wanted to come over straight away but I got her to wait till morning when I took Rose to the hospital. Later on, the annoying females of the house finally went to bed and I tried to go to sleep on the lounge. It didn't take long for me to know that it wasn't going to happen; I was too worried and worked up. It was just after midnight when I first heard sounds coming from upstairs. I stood at my door listening...

"No... leave..." I heard from inside.

I quietly opened the door and saw Rose moving around in the bed.

"Don't..." she mumbled.

A nightmare... I didn't know if I should wake her or not. I didn't want her to have to live out the attack again, but she wasn't thrashing around either, so I thought I'd wait to see if it just fizzled out and she could just go back to sleep. I sat in the chair that was against the wall opposite to my bed and watched over her.

"No... Don't Jess..."

I closed my eyes and clenched my fists in an effort to keep myself in that chair. If I didn't, I would have found myself facing murder charges. If the nightmare didn't stop soon, I'd have to wake her; I couldn't hear much more of this...

Her breathing picked up and she started to thrash but before I could move, she woke up yelling...

"NO...!" I should have realised I would have scared her when I moved, but all I could think of was getting to her. When she saw me, she let out the most blood curdling scream. That's how I found myself in my bed and my arms wrapped around the woman I loved.

I only got snippets of sleep after that but the next morning I felt like I'd slept for a week. I watched her sleep and it was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I loved her like I've never loved anyone else. Even the feelings I had for Ivana were nothing in comparison. Everything up to now had been so ballsed-up, I had to do something right, so when she woke up, I asked her to be my girlfriend. I was elated when she said yes.

=x=

Finally after ensuring that nothing was broken and Detective Morris had all the photos detailing Roza's bruises, we left the hospital. I was glad that Liss had come too, she was the support that I couldn't be while the photos were taken but by the time she left us in the car park, both Roza and I knew that she was hiding something.

I wanted to take Roza's mind off things for a while but before that could happen; I had to let Janine know I would be taking the next couple of days off. I couldn't imagine that she'd have a problem with that; if she did then a simple resignation would fix the problem. I need not have worried, Janine told me to take as long as needed.

I knew Rose wouldn't be up for anything big, so I decided to do something that I hoped wouldn't freak her out.

I'd been to the local mall last week with Mr Dashkov; he apparently had business to do with one of the shop owners. I was surprised when we walked into a jewellery store; it confused me to think of what sort of business he would have here. Up until now, his business seemed to centre on medical or military issues. I was left in the store while the man took Viktor out the back and while they were gone, I saw a gold necklace on display that I thought would look beautiful around Roza's neck and on it hung a gold rose encrusted with diamonds. At the time I didn't think I would ever have a reason to buy her something like that. When the two men emerged from the back of the shop I saw that Viktor had a small bag in his hand.

"Congratulate the happy couple for me if you will, Mr Dashkov." Said the owner.

_What happy couple? _I thought to myself. The small parcel was quickly locked away in the briefcase before leaving the shop, but the image of that necklace never left my mind.

Now, I wanted to get it for her, hopefully bring a smile to her face. As we walked inside the mall a Starbucks was right before us, I didn't know about Rose, but I could certainly do with a coffee.

I felt Rose slow behind me before we got to the counter. "What the hell?" She said in an odd voice.

I turned to see what was wrong and followed her line of sight over to the far wall of the shop. I was shocked to see Lissa sitting with Dashkov's son, especially considering the fact that it was only about an hour since she told us she was meeting her father. I was more than a little suspicious when I saw their hands joined... I trusted this guy as much as I did his father and that only stretched to as far as I could throw him. From the little I'd seen of Lissa and Christian together, I couldn't imagine that she'd want _that _sort of relationship with Dashkov junior.

Rose immediately wanted to know what was going on, I couldn't blame her really, I wanted to know too... When Lissa saw us walking towards her, the look on her face showed nothing but extreme guilt, she knew she'd been sprung. Nat on the other hand tried to make out that nothing unto do was happening but I knew his type, now if only I knew what he was really up to.

* * *

**Dont forget to let me know what you think...**

**Translations;**

Dobroye utro = Good morning.

Na**kon**yets = Finally.


	27. Chapter 21 Gifts

**A/N: **Hi everyone, just a quick note, there will be more at the end of this chapter... I have added some photos to my Photobucket that go with this chapter, so if you'd like to see... go to my profile page and go to the photobucket link. The new photos are in the "Fight Back" album.

Don't forget to read the A/N at the end.  
Sandy

* * *

**21 Gifts.**

I let go of Dimitri's hand as I started to walk over to the table in the far corner of the coffee shop.

"Rose, what are you going to do?"

"Get some bloody answers, that's what." He didn't try to stop me.

I was only about six feet away from them when Liss looked up and saw me. Her face paled immediately and as her mouth opened her hand quickly slipped out of Nat's grip.

"What's going on?" I asked abruptly. "He doesn't look like your father to me Liss."

"Rose... I..." I could see I wasn't going to get anything out of her just yet, she was too flustered, so I turned to face the bane of my childhood existence.

"What in the hell are you up to Nat?"

"Hello to you too Rose. Can't I have coffee with a friend?"

"Yeah, sure, but when that friend starts acting all weird for at least a week and then starts lying to me about false 'appointments' that she's supposed to have with her father about college only to find her here... holding hands with _you..._ that's when my _bull_shit radar starts throwing up red flags. I'm not an idiot Nat. I've never trusted you, you or your father, and all of this has just proven that I was right all along. Liss has been saying... '_Oh no... He's changed, give him a chance.'_... _Bullshit_ you've changed. Now, what the _fuck_ are you after?" I seethed.

"Roza."

"Rose..." Liss said at the same time.

"No... Whatever he's doing Liss, he's up to no good. Don't trust him. What about Christian, are you even thinking of him?"

"That's all I _have_ been thinking of Rose..." she said with a sigh. She looked down at her hands in her lap as she spoke again. "A lot has been happening to you lately Rose, and I'm not saying this to make you feel bad, but a lot has happened with me too."

"What in the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?"

She looked up, but not at me... "Can I talk to you later Nat?"

He looked at her for a few seconds before answering. "Sure but are sure you don't want me to stay?"

What in the hell does he think he has to stay for? _Dipshit_... In my head Mini me walked up to him where he sat at the table and produced a sawn off shotgun from behind her back, she ever so elegantly stuck the barrel under his nostrils like some modern day, negligee wearing Annie Oakley; ten gallon hat included and forced him out of our lives. She was quite the sight to behold.

"No. Rose and I need to talk." Liss said pulling me out of my daydreams.

"Call me..." he said with raised eyebrows before turning and walking out of the coffee shop. He kept his eyes on Lissa through the glass as he walked along the outside of the shop. I noticed he didn't leave the mall, instead he walked further inside.

"I'll go get the drinks..." Dimitri said looking between us.

"Can I have a hot chocolate please?" I asked. A quick smile and nod was all the reply I got before he turned around and gave us some privacy. "Spill..." I said as I sat beside in the chair that Nat previously sat in.

"I'm sorry, I know I should have talked to you before now... and I did plan on it but yesterday sort of... happened." I didn't want to think of yesterday...

"You were quiet before then Liss..."

"I know. I've just been so confused and I've been trying to work things out in my head. Last Tuesday Nat and I... kissed."

Thank God I wasn't drinking anything when she said that...

"Who kissed who?" I asked as my heart rate increased.

"I think I sort of leant forward first but we both... Rose, I love Christian, I really do. I never expected for this to happen. I've felt so guilty all week; I was trying to work out how to talk to you about it all."

"So why the meeting here, today?"

"I like Nat, I really do and I honestly think he's a nice guy." _She was so naive..._ I thought as I rolled my eyes. "No Rose, he really is. I think the kiss took both of us by surprise. We were actually talking about you just before it happened. He was saying how much he admired you and wished that he'd been able to get to know us as we grew up and that he would have loved to have known the person you were before Jesse attacked you. You know I've always said that he had a crush on you growing up..."

"Yeah, a lifelong crush on me, made him kiss you... yeah, that's how it works."

Ignoring my comment, she continued. "I told him that the thought of where our relationships would have ended up had he stayed in the US had been on my mind too, as he'd grown into a really nice guy and then... it just happened."

I could see she wasn't lying to me, but I was still so confused over her actions. "So are you telling me that you have feelings for him now?"

"No... not really, I don't think." She babbled as her face screwed up in a slight grimace. She lifted her mug of coffee and took a sip before continuing some more. "Before you got here just now, I'd just told him that things couldn't happen between us, that I was with Christian."

"And what did he say to that?"

"He was... he was more for wanting me to face what I was feeling and to see where things could go. He wants me to go on one real date with him just to see if I felt anything or not."

"And are you going to take him up on the offer?" I could see by her face that she wanted to but was scared to let it play out. I could only imagine that some of her fear would be of not only what I would say, but also if she ended up feeling something that she should only be feeling for Christian. "I'm not going to tell you what you should do Liss, that's up to you. What I do want to ask you is... before the kiss, were there any problems with Christian?"

"No, none."

"So... do you think that these feelings you have towards Nat could be simply because you're confused as to why you liked the kiss of another guy?"

Her eyes narrowed in contemplation before looking back at me.

"I suppose so, I didn't think about it like that. What does it say about me Rose, that I find pleasure in other guy's kisses when I should only find it with Christian?"

"That you're female...?" She didn't find it as funny as I did.

"Could you find it as pleasurable with another guy as you do with Dimitri?" _Oh! _"That's what I thought... Rose, what if everything I feel for Christian is only there because it's all I've ever known? What if..."

"What if..." I interrupted her rantings... "... some demonic being stood before you with Christian's neck held firmly in his right hand and Nat's neck firmly in his left and told you to choose? That you could save one and the other would be his... dinner? Which would you choose? Come on answer, don't think, just answer..."

"I can't..." she squeaked. _Shit...that didn't work the way it should have. _

Just then I felt my insides hum with what could only be described as internal goosebumps. He was behind me, I knew it. I grinned as I turned my head and sure enough, Dimitri stood behind me with his eyebrow lifted in question.

"It's safe." I said. His eyes flicked over to Lissa as he took the few steps he needed to reach our table.

"Good morning Lissa." He greeted.

"Morning Dimitri. Thank you for – yesterday and being there for Rose."

"I'll always be there for her, I learn from my mistakes." I looked into his eyes and wondered if that comment had another meaning to it or not; he hadn't been here to hear what Lissa had just told me.

"Don't tell me you like shopping too Dimitri." Lissa said in what I knew was her way of changing the line of conversation.

"I can't say it's one of my favourite things to do, but there is a reason I've brought Roza here."

"Oh really? That sounds interesting." She said raising an eyebrow in my direction.

"Don't look at me, he hasn't told me a thing." I said.

"Well, I'll let you get to it then." She said standing up. "I think I'll head home, I have a few things I need to sort out. I'll see you both later." She bent down to kiss my cheek and give me a hug before leaving.

"Drink up..." Dimitri said with a smirk. "We have somewhere to be." The smirk stretched into a full on smile as he lifted his mug to his lips. _Oh, those glorious lips... _

Ten minutes later we were walking through the mall, my head swivelling from left to right at all the shops I wanted nothing more than to go into. When I heard Dimitri softly laugh beside me, I knew my barely restrained desire to shop had been well and truly noticed.

"You know you can go into wherever you'd like to Roza."

"But didn't you say we had somewhere to go?"

"Yes, but I can take you there whenever we finish here." Now I was confused...

"Nah, I can come here another time. Lead on Master..." I loved seeing that look pass over his eyes whenever I said that word. It made butterflies hatch in my toes and fly all the way up to my stomach _and_ it made Mini me swoon on her chaise... With a deep breath and a small shake of his head, he led me forward.

When he turned to the left and pulled me towards the jewellery shop, I couldn't work out if I felt confused, delighted or a little freaked out. What in the hell were we doing in here?

"I had a need to be here last week while I was working and while I waited around; I got a chance to look at some of the things here." Dimitri said while his eyes scanned the small shop. The plush white carpet was in stark contrast to the midnight black walls but the small yet powerful halogen spot lights that were embedded into the ceiling bounced off the steel edged glass cases that lined the walls of the shop. The beautiful and delicate chandeliers that hung around the room added a touch of elegance and they threw sparkles of lights in all different directions. I couldn't deny that I was a little excited to know what it was that he wanted to show me...

"You look like I'm leading you to the gallows Rose."

All I could do was bite my lip and blush at the level at which he could read me.

"Mr... Belikov, isn't it?" The man behind the counter said in greeting.

"Yes, but please call me Dimitri, Mr Blake. This is my girlfriend Rose..." _Holy shit... _"...and when I was here last week, I saw something that I thought she would love."

"Of course, how may I be of assistance?" I must have missed something when Mr Blake gave a slight nod and walked over to the counters to my right. How he knew what Dimitri wanted was beyond me. I saw him pull out a large tray that had a number of things on it. On one side of the tray stood a small felt bust that was adorned with a large, chunky, curb link necklace. Beside that there were a number of bracelets and bangles, plain and jewel encrusted interspersed with a myriad of diamond and semi precious stoned rings that each stood clasped in their own individual clear plastic stands making them to appear to hover in mid air. Then I saw what was on the other side of the tray, I knew this was what he'd brought me here for. I smiled when I saw it and pulled my lips between my teeth in an effort to not have my smile give me away.

"What are you smirking about, Love?" He whispered into my ear. _Damn, I can't hide shit from him! _

Just then Mr Blake stopped in front of us and layed the tray of jewellery on the glass counter and I turned to look up at the man I loved.

"Go on... pick it up." Dimitri said with a smile on his lips. His eyes shone with a playful light as he waited for me to reach for it. I released my lips from my teeth and turned to the tray in front of me, my eyes going straight to the other small felt bust on the right hand side. I reached out and ran my fingers down the chain till it stopped at the diamond encrusted rose that hang at the bottom; it didn't escape my notice that both the chain and the pendant were created in rose gold . Mr Blake lifted it from its display and layed the rose in my palm; the chain hanging over the edge of my hand.

"It's so beautiful..." I whispered. I normally had a propensity of cringing away from 'rosey' things like this; God knows how many things Liss and Mia tried to buy me over the years, but I couldn't deny the beauty of this.

"It's nothing compared to the rose in front of me." I couldn't help the snort of amusement that erupted from me at the corniness of his words.

"Sorry... "I said as I glanced up to him, "...but, you didn't just say that..."

I turned back to admire what I held in my hand but I happened to glance at the little piece of paper that sat under the bust that held the necklace...

"Holy shit... I can't..." I exclaimed.

"And why not?"

"It's... it costs..."

"Don't even go there Roza."

"But it's nearly $3000, I can't..." He stopped my rant by placing a finger to my lips.

"If the price worried me, I wouldn't have brought you here; now let me put it on. Just... turn around." He smirked at me when he saw I was about to argue with him. He took the chain from my hand with a 'Shhh! This is going to happen, so just smile and say thank you.' as I tried once more to argue. I turned my back to him and held my hair up so that he could clasp it around my neck. "Painful woman..." he grumbled as he bent down and kissed my neck.

I reached up and touched the pendant as I turned around to face him. "Before I say 'thank you', there's something I want."

"And what's that?"

"This..." I reached up and laced my fingers into the hair at the back of his head and pulled him down to me. He came down willingly and kissed me gently, probably mindful of where we were and who was standing in front of us but the instant my tongue touched his lips, he grabbed me around the waist and lifted me off the ground, don't ask me how one of my legs ended up around his back in an effort to get closer.

"Ahem..."

We pulled away and stared into each other's eyes before I turned to face the evilness that dared to interrupt us.

"Cash or credit." The evil Mr Blake asked.

"Credit." Dimitri said as he put me down to the ground.

Walking out of the shop hand in hand, I turned to Dimitri.

"I'm going to smack out the next person who interrupts us. The first few times were a little embarrassing, but now... it's just pissing me off."

"Well maybe you should hold yourself back from eating me until we're in a more... private setting."

"Maybe if we found ourselves in a more private setting I could show you just how much I _am _holding myself back."

"You're going to be the death of me Roza." He said with a growl...

"Yeah probably... but what a way to die." I said laughing. He let out a much louder growl as he pinched my ass hard.

=x=

"Ah... where are we going?" I asked as we drove in the opposite direction of both of our homes.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because that would ruin the surprise."

Forty minutes later Dimitri drove up to a large wrought iron gate at the bottom of what I could see was a long winding driveway, where he entered a few numbers in a security device; I couldn't see any house from where we were.

As we climbed higher and higher along the bitumen drive, I got more excited. Then the house came into view... It was stunning... A real life wooden cabin, only on steroids.

"What is this place?" I asked as I stared out the windshield of the car. I didn't even realise I was alone in the car until my door opened and Dimitri held his hand out for me. "Who lives here?"

"Well... for the next two days – we do."

"We do?"

"Yup, wanna come check it out?"

I wrapped my arm around his waist and let him lead me to a set of stairs that lead to the front door. Opening the front door, we walked into an open plan room with cathedral high ceilings, a stone fire place surrounded by comfy looking lounges and a kitchen off to one side.

"Oh wow... this is just... breath taking."

"Wait till you see the view..." he said leading me through the 'cabin'... Dimitri opened a sliding glass door and all I could do was gasp and stare in amazement. Even though the trees were almost close enough to touch, the valley dropped down below us to where we could see a natural creek with its own swimming hole.

"Oh God... this is amazing."

"Wanna explore the rest of the place?"

"Okay." I said smiling. It was just the two of us, in the mountains, in a place that screamed romance... I was on a high! Dimitri led me up the staircase to the second floor and I couldn't help but look in all the rooms as we went. "So which one is ours?"

"Whichever one is the biggest!" he grinned. _Sounds like a plan. _"There's a room off the lounge area but it won't hurt to see what else there is. It's a little bigger than we need just for the two of us, but I thought it looked pretty amazing so I just went with it."

After our little tour, we ended up taking the room on the ground floor, even though it was still too hot to use it, the fire place made it look cosy and romantic, plus it had a spa bath in the ensuite.

"When did you do all of this?"

"At the hospital, well mainly at the hospital; I had a little help from my mother. I spoke to her last night when you went to sleep about getting you away from everything for a while and she told me about this place. Apparently one of the doctors that she's friends with said that her husband had brought her here for their anniversary. So between the two of us..."

"You're too good to be true." I said as I reached up and kissed him.

"No, you just bring out the best in me. How 'bout we change into more comfortable clothes..."

"You thought of everything, didn't you?"

"I hope so..." he said laughing. After changing into a pair of denim shorts and my favourite black tank, Dimitri took me out to sit on the wooden chairs on the deck that looked out over the side of the property. "Wait here for a minute, I'll be back..."

"Make it quick Arnie..." I said after he kissed my forehead. I just laughed at his confused look to my Schwarzenegger reference... Within minutes he'd returned with a tray in his arms that held two crystal champagne flutes, a bottle of Bollinger, a bowl of strawberries and a bowl of whipped cream. He set it down on the small table beside his chair. "Don't I get any...?"

"Yes." He was being very secretive... I liked this Dimitri – a lot! He popped the cork like a master and poured us both a glass of the expensive bubbly and handed me one before turning back and grabbing a strawberry. He moved to kneel in front of me and brought the fruit to my lips. "The perfect pair, they should never exist without each other. Open..." As I opened my mouth, I wondered if he was talking about the strawberries and champers or us.

After that he stood up and sat down beside me where he then proceeded to feed me strawberries and cream one by one... Needless to say, I was getting hornier and hornier with each one, especially when I'd touch his fingers with my tongue; sitting beside him was soon not close enough. I stood up with my champagne in hand and straddled myself over his lap. "I thought I'd make it easier for you, I don't like to see you have to reach for my mouth." Mini me was back in her fluffy, see through negligee and heels and sending me all the dirty thoughts she could think of, she was useful in a pinch!

"Is that right?"

"Mmmhmm..." Without taking his eyes from mine, he reached over and grabbed another strawberry and brought it to my mouth. Instead of biting though, I rubbed the tip of my tongue around the pointy end of the seductive fruit before taking into my mouth. I could only imagine what Dimitri was thinking as he watched my every move, his jaw clenched as his eyes widened and he swallowed hard... "Mmmm, juicy..." I whispered as I licked my lips. I'd purposely let juicy fall from my lips and that's exactly where his eyes were... following it trickle down my chin. He glanced up into my eyes briefly before leaning forward, grabbing me in his arms and licking the juice from my face and lips.

"You're so bad." He whispered against my lips. His hands were tangled in my hair as mine were in his and we both moaned in the pleasure of the tastes we shared. I pulled my lips away from his and looked deeply into his before getting off his lap.

"Come with me." I said as I held out my hand. He knew what I was asking and I could see he was about to turn me down with his Zen crap, so I leant forward and took his face in my hands. "I'm not going to break. I want you, I want this. Come with me..." I stood back up and held out my hand again, this time he took it.

I led him into our room and to the side of the bed before turning around to look at him.

"Are you sure Roza? I didn't bring you here to..."

"Shut up and kiss me Dimitri."

"Yes Ma'am." He said with a cheeky smirk... and holy crap, what a kiss. He bent down and wrapped his huge arms around my body, lifting me up and bringing a leg around his waist. A second later, he'd knelt up onto the bed and gently laid me on my back; his lips never leaving mine. As a hand moved down my side, his mouth moved down my neck, alternating between nips, sucks and swirling tongues. My back arched up as his hand made its way up under my tank and palmed my breast.

"Oh..." I moaned as he rolled my nipple between his thumb and finger. His mouth continued down, covering my chest in soft kisses but he had me crying out again when his seductively poked his tongue out and licked the top of my cleavage.

"This needs to come off..." he said as he tugged at my tank top. I didn't object. He let out a soft growl when he saw I was bare underneath. He leant down and with the barest of touches, flicked the tip of his tongue against my nipple. He smiled at the response he got.

"Uh..." I breathed out as I trembled under him. His lips, teeth and tongue went to work, his hands explored and my body continued to burn. "You're so soft..." he whispered against my chest. The flutter of his breath against me made my toes curl and my eyes roll back into my head.

As occupied as my brain was with his ministrations, I was still very much aware of what his hands were doing. When they reached the waistband of my shorts, my skin prickled as his fingertips ghosted across my stomach. I felt the button pop open... then the zip... tooth by tooth...

As Dimitri's mouth released me, his lust filled eyes met mine for a second before he paid homage to my other breast. Slowly his hands went to my hips and his fingers slipped into my open shorts. Long fingers grasped and slid around to caress me from behind, bringing my hips hard against his...

By now I was a boiling hot puddle of lava just waiting to explode... My hands came away from the bed and tried to unbutton his shirt but they were shaking with anticipation, so I did the only thing I could think of... I slipped my fingers into the opening of his shirt and ripped it open... buttons popped and clanged across the wooden floorboards but that action lit a fire in Dimitri's eyes that I had never seen before. If it were possible, I swear they would have glowed red!

As he brought his hungry lips to mine, his hands pushed at the sides of my shorts. Mini me was in my ear, screaming at me to _'lift your ass, lift your ass!'_ She was finally getting what she wanted and she didn't want to give him _any_ excuse to stop now. I quickly followed her instructions and the material soon made its way down my legs. My hands scrambled to rid him of his now button-less shirt; which he decided to help with. Leaving him to it, I went straight for the button of his cargo's, but he took my hands away and raised them up so that they were now either side of my head.

"Not so fast Roza." He smiled mischievously. His eyes roamed down my almost naked body. "I've dreamt and waited for this for a _very _long time and I plan on taking my time in learning to speak 'Roza'."

_Oh fuck yeah..._

He released my hands but when I started to move them, he just shook his head at me. I may still be a virgin but I was sooo ready for this, any embarrassment that I thought I'd feel just didn't exist. Maybe it was because of who I was with. I loved this man with my entire heart and soul but most of all, I trusted him implicitly. I reached my hands up and grabbed the thick wooden posts of the bed head. Obviously pleased with my actions, he kissed my lips gently before turning his attention back to my body.

"I love you Roza... with all my heart." He whispered after he traced the shell of my ear with his tongue. His lips kissed gently in between soft nips with his teeth. My jaw, my neck, my shoulders, my chest... I watched as he kissed down my stomach before twirling his tongue around the edge of my navel.

Then he sat up on his knees, positioning himself in between my legs. "I like these." He said tracing his fingers over the black lacy knickers I had on. "_Very _much."

"I'll have to remember that." I said smiling. I didn't want him to see just how nervous I was, not in a bad way, but nervous none the less... He ran his hands slowly up both legs and the higher he got, the more my rope in the bottom of my stomach twisted and tingled; they stopped when they reached my hips. He looped his fingers into the elastic waistband and slowly pulled one side down, replacing where it had been with his lips. As he kissed his way across my stomach, he brought the other side down.

I was scared I was about to hyperventilate with the way I was panting, my heart was going _way _too fast... surely I couldn't keep going like this and not pass out.

"Breathe Roza..." Dimitri said as he pulled the lace further down. He lifted my legs at the knees so that he could rid me of the last scrap of material. "If you want to stop at any time, just tell me."

"No..." I breathed as I opened myself up in front of him.

He growled softly under his breath as his eyes hungrily took in the last piece of me that he'd never seen before. "You have... no idea what it does to me... to see you like this." He leant forward and kissed my stomach once more before making his way downwards.

As his tongue touched me for the first time, I yelled out in surprise and I felt myself heat up even more. Gently he pressed his lips against me before bringing his tongue back out, licking upwards.

_I really am going to pass out... _I thought as I pressed my head back into the pillow, my breathing had become shallow and fast and the thought to close my legs crossed my mind, them being open after all was the cause of my current condition...

But I didn't!

"So sweet..." he whispered against me. My body trembled as his breath came against my heat. Then all of a sudden, he took me completely into his mouth, sucking gently while his tongue did things I couldn't even put into words.

"HOLY SHIT!" I yelled when he started moaning against me. My hands flew away from the headboard to grip the sheets beside me but they didn't stay there for long. They quickly made their way into his hair and that's when he turned it up another notch. Moving slightly downwards, he pressed his tongue into me.

I stopped breathing as my hips came off the bed and my eyes slammed shut as my consciousness exploded around in my head... Holy _FUCK_... When the fog started to clear from my brain, Mini me was draped backwards over her chaise with her head nearly touching the floor; her hands flailing drunkenly around her... _Round two?... Say there's a round two... _She said with a dumbass grin plastered on her face... Hussy!

When I opened my eyes, I realised she wasn't the only one with a dumbass grin... "That... wow..." I said panting. Dimitri on the other hand, well his grin was more... smug.

"That was only the entree my love." Slowly he kissed his way upwards until his lips were a hairs breath away from mine. I couldn't wait anymore... I lifted my head and slammed my lips to his hungrily. I pulled away and licked my lips, knowing that what I could taste now was me... "Yummy hey..." Dimitri smirked before kissing me again.

I moaned out into his mouth when his hand came to my core. Those long, dexterous fingers ran up and down my opening, moving further and further in with each pass. I felt him slowly press one finger inside, his movement mirrored by his tongue in my mouth. I quickly began moving with him and I moaned again as I felt him add another finger.

In... out...

In... out...

"Dimitri..." I said breathlessly. I had no idea what I wanted to say, that's all that came out. His fingers did wonderful things inside me; finding spots that made my breath hitch. Soon that hot, tingly feeling was building down low again. He was inside me, over me, around me...every one of my senses was filled with Dimitri. Over and over he stroked inside me, building the fire in my belly and as pressed hard against my clit, I exploded again, pulsing around the three finger he now had inside me.

The sound that erupted from me as I tried to lift off the bed was somewhere in the vicinity of a laugh, cry or scream... or something that combined all three. "Holy mother of God..." I yelled.

Mini me was now sprawled on her back on the floor with one leg still up on the chaise lounge... she tried, but she couldn't seem to speak; I knew how she felt...

"I like my meals served a little different Roza. That was desert, you ready for the main course?" Dimitri said as his fingers kept playing with my now hot, sensitive flesh. I tried to wriggle away from him playfully but he was having none of that.

"I don't know if my body can handle anymore..." I said to the utmost horror of Mini me... My heart was still beating rapidly in its cage.

"Oh, you'd be surprised at what your body can handle and I'm a quick learner, I'm almost completely fluent in the language of 'Roza'." As he gently kissed my slightly swollen lips, he moved his body slightly to the side and started to fiddle with something between us, when I realised what he was doing, I reached down and grabbed his hands.

"Let me." I said quietly. Without a word he brought his hand back up and to cup my face with his other hand and kissed me lovingly as I undid the button of his cargo pants. The feel of his hardness against me had me throbbing and even covered up; I could feel how large he was. Over the years I'd heard the stories told by girls about their first time at school. Some had told of how awkward and fumbling it all was, some cried with regret; especially when the guy took off as soon as they got what they wanted, but all had talked about the pain and discomfort. I wasn't stupid, I expected it to hurt a little the first time but what had happened up until now had been the most wonderful experience of my life.

When I'd finished my task, I tried to push his pants down but his body was too long and I couldn't reach, so I did something that caused him to moan loudly against my lips. I lifted my legs up either side of his body and hooked my big toes into the sides of his pants; pushing them down that way. He helped in his own way by lifting his lower half up and it was then that I saw how really big he was.

He must have seen something in my eyes as he put a finger under my chin and tilted my face up to look at him.

"You're huge..." I blurted out before I could stop it. My cheeks flamed as he started chuckling.

"Why thank you..."

"Oh God..." I muttered in embarrassment.

"Don't be embarrassed, I love your innocence. I'll go slow, just let me know if you want me to stop, alright." He said looking directly into my eyes.

"Okay."

He reached down and positioned himself at my entrance; the feeling made my body erupt in goosebumps. He looked down at my chest and smiled as my body responded to his. Keeping his eyes on mine, he slowly pushed against me, bringing himself just inside before pulling back. With each gentle thrust, he went further inside. I loved feeling him like this but I could tell by the clenching of his jaw, that he was trying his hardest to be gentle.

"What's wrong?" I asked him when he stilled for a second. He didn't answer, he just looked into my eyes with a burning intensity before he licked his lips and bent down to kiss me. As our tongues came together, he pushed further and I felt a slight burn inside, making me tense up and let out a little hiss. It was a little uncomfortable but within seconds it had started to go and all that was left was the feeling of him completely filling me.

"Okay...?" He asked against my lips.

"Yeah." I lifted my right leg and wrapped it around his waist as I wove my fingers into his hair. His eyes were soft as he looked into mine, his fingers tracing the lines of my face and lips as he kept still inside of me; I felt myself relax around him and that's when he smiled and kissed me again. He moved slowly and gently, movement my body soon started mimicking.

"Ungh..." I moaned as he thrust in a little deeper. Dimitri tickled his left hand down my side and clutched the cheek of my butt before grabbing me leg from around his waist. Slowly he pushed it further up his side and closer to my chest, I didn't think it possible but that simple movement allowed him to go further inside.

"Oh Roza..." he whispered as he took my earlobe into his mouth. His hot breath sent shivers down my spine, making my body tremble... "Так туго... Tак тепло."

I turned my face to his and brought his lips to mine. I felt so many emotions swirling around my mind and body, I felt as if I was about implode under the weight of it all.

"Am I hurting you?" Dimitri asked as he wiped a tear that had fallen from my eye.

"No..."

"Then why...?"

"I never knew... I never knew I could feel this happy, this loved."

"You are loved," he whispered against my lips. "...forever."

Our movements became faster, deeper. Our breaths became one as our tongues continued their mating dance. I had no idea where he finished and I began, at that moment, we were one. Higher and higher I flew until he brought me to orgasm once more, triggering his own release.

"Oh..." he moaned against my mouth. I held his face in my hands and my heart nearly burst seeing the look of total and utter pleasure sweep across his face, knowing it was me who put it there. We stayed where we were as our hearts and breathing slowed, joined, not wanting to part. We kissed slowly, with feather touches and I couldn't believe that such man existed. Dimitri rolled to my left and I let out a small whimper at the loss of his body. "Thank you my love."

"What for?"

He smiled as one eyebrow rose in the way that made my heart skip a beat. "For your trust, for your love, for the gift you just gave me."

"It's always been you." I whispered.

"I hate to leave but I need to..." he said motioning down between us. I smiled as I bit my lip in a late show of slight embarrassment. "I'll be back in a tic." With a kiss to my forehead, he rolled over and walked over to the ensuite bathroom.

I've fantasized a long time about the sight walking away from me and real life was _so _much better. I couldn't help the shit-eating grin that plastered itself across my face as I buried myself further into the soft bedding, Mini me was now safely back on her lounge, butt naked and smoking the obligatory post coital cigarette... She was _so _cliché.

I felt the bed dip down behind me at the same time as his strong, muscular arm wrapped around my waist.

"Was it everything you thought it would be? It didn't hurt too much did it?"

"No, only a little bit." I said after turning to face him. "I didn't know what to expect really, I'd heard so many bad things from the girls at school over the years, but what we just shared was... beautiful and loving. Thank you for..." I said as my throat threatened to close up.

"For what love?"

I took a deep breath to calm myself. "For making my first time so wonderful, for chasing away..." I didn't know how he'd handle me saying this but I had to let him know. "For chasing away all the bad things in my head and replacing them with gentleness and adoration, because that's what I felt, I felt adored and I'll never forget this for as long as I live."

He closed his eyes and he pulled my body flush to his, kissing my forehead and wrapping my tightly in his embrace. I felt myself relax completely as his hands stroked down my hair and back while he told me just how much he loved me.

The next time I opened my eyes, I was tucked firmly against his side with my head on his shoulder, my arm over his stomach and my leg wound in amongst his. I smiled as I turned my face and snuggled into the crook of his neck. His scent of musky male and 'Dimitri' did naughty things to my body... My tongue came out of its own accord and licked gently against his skin... _Man he tastes good..._

He was either already awake before me or his body responded to me even in sleep because moments after I licked him, his arm tightened around me. When I felt him turn his face to me, I looked up into his eyes. I wanted him again... I quickly lifted myself up and slid across his body.

"What are you doing?" He asked me with a smile.

"What's it look like?" I said before kissing my way down his body. I didn't know if I'd be able to do it, but I wanted to at least try... I wanted to taste him like he'd tasted me. By the time my tongue was tracing the lines of his eight pack, I could feel his hardness against my chest.

Mini me laid sprawled on her lounge, wiggling her eyebrows and eating a banana! Hussy...

**Translations:**

Так туго (tak tugo) - so tight

Так тепло (tak teplo) - so warm

* * *

**A/N:** Okay... A little long, but please read...

Sorry for taking so long to update, but this is actually the second Chapter 21 I've written... my beta, Deliciouse must be tearing her hair out by now... :D After dragging my way through writing the first one, it still didn't feel right... so I wrote nearly the whole thing again... (those who have lost complete chapters know how frustrating this can be...) Anyway, finally I think I have it right, even if it's not exactly where I thought I'd go with this chapter.

Unfortunately, real life is taking my concentration a bit at the moment, so I may not be able to update weekly like I have been. I will try to update asap and I WILL finish this story, updates may just take 2 weeks instead of one... So bear with me!

Someone asked if I had plans of another story... well, yeah... I've actually written a rather _Adult _one shot, it's rated M for MMMMMM! hehehe I don't know if it will go much further than one chapter, I suppose that will be determined by how well it's recieved... If enough people want it to continue, I will...

Anyway, so don't worry if chapters take a little longer to come through, they will get there... maybe weekly, maybe not.

I hope you liked this chapter, I hope the feelings came through. Let me know what you think.

Sandy


	28. Chapter 22 Where Is She?

**A/N:** Sorry, sorry, sorry... I know I'm late... Naughty me. :-) RL just got in the way and then I went away for our state championship horse show... But here's the next installment and I want to thank you all for patiently waiting for an update! (Well most of you... hehehe)

I've also got Ch 2 of Achilles nearly finished and I hope to have that up in the next day or two... and let me just say that Dimitri in _that_ story is a devious, wicked man who takes an awful lot of pleasure in his aility to get Rose all hot and bothered! LOL! I think I'm going to have fun with him...

Enjoy

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22 Where is she?

"Please tell me that was beginners luck Rose..." Dimitri asked as I layed on his chest; my ear pressed over where his heart beat as rapidly as his breathing.

"What do you mean?" I said though my giggles and flushed cheeks.

"You know what I mean. Where did you learn to do that?" Without lifting my head, I glanced up and was more than a little happy to see the grin _I'd _put on his face. An image of Mini me with her banana crossed my mind and made me snort.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." I looked down and closed my eyes as I breathed in his wonderful scent. Until I'd met Dimitri, I couldn't stand the smell of sweat but I swear one day, I'm gonna bottle his; preferably the post sex sweat.

"Try me." He said lifting my face back up to his.

"Well..." I said grinning, "...if you must know, it was Lissa."

"You learnt how to do... _that_, from Lissa? Well that's... disturbing." He said softy laughing.

I screwed my nose up and softly swatted him across his chest. "Yes, I did. And it wasn't like that."

"Do I dare ask?" He had a rather mischievous look in his eyes as he held my hand against his chest.

"Surely you must know, living in a house full of girls, that we talk... about everything."

"Yes I do know this, but I didn't think your 'talks' got situationaly specific."

"Well maybe not _all_ girls do, but Lissa sure does. I can't tell you how mentally scarred I am because of her... sex-tales. She has a way of putting images into your head like you're actually there... in _her_ head- experiencing what she's _experiencing_... now _that's _disturbing."

I briefly wondered what his reaction would be if I told him I knew _exactly _how long Christian was... down there and what his face looked like when he – finished!

"That may very well be, but I think I may have to thank her for her '_talks_' when we get back."

"Oh, _that _I like to see... '_Lissa... I need to thank you for your expert tutelage on the art of fellatio, it proved very useful; you're an expert teacher... Got any other lessons you wish to share with my woman?'" _I said in my best imitation of Dimitri's low, sexy but lightly accented voice. I would have continued but I was unceremoniously dumped onto my back and he had me pinned underneath him as he started to tickle my ribs without mercy.

"Now you're in for it woman!" Dimitri growled.

"ARGH!" I yelled laughing... "No, stop! I'm sorry, I'm sorry... you have a very sexy voice..." I was gasping for breath as my arms and legs flailed and kicked wildly.

"Promise you won't do the 'voice' again Roza." He said laughing at my struggles.

"No... I won't promise... I like the voice..." He stepped up his loving mauling of me by attaching his mouth to my neck as his hands kept tickling my sides. "AH! Okay, okay... stop, I promise, I promise..."

"You promise what Roza?" I said as he looked at me with an absolutely euphoric expression.

"I promise... to-only-use-the-voice-when-absolutely-necessary..." I said in one long gush of words.

"Wrong answer..."

In one swift move, Dimitri leapt off me and scooped me up into his arms.

"What..."

Dimitri spun around and started running out of the bedroom, both of us naked as the day we were born, and out of the French doors that lead out to the rear deck. He turned to the right and quickly down the stairs.

"Where are you taking me? Dimitri... someone will see..."

"Nah... no-one out here but the trees my love." He said smiling as he walked with determination down the path... That's when I understood where he was going.

"You wouldn't dare..." I growled as I clung around his neck. He just started chuckling and shaking his head. Of course he'd dare... he never did anything that he wouldn't go through with... "It'll be cold... I promise, I promise I won't use the voice anymore..."

"Too late."

I turned to see the little pool of water within the stream getting closer and closer and even though it was still summer, I knew that up here in the mountains, that water would be _freezing_. I knew pleading would get me nowhere so I tried for the next best thing... pouting and puppy-dog eyes; even Mini me got in the act.

He glanced down at my expression and rolled his eyes at me, his stride never faulting. The pool was getting closer and I had to think quickly! I tightened my arms and brought my face up to his.

"You wouldn't dunk me would you baby?" I said in my best pouty voice I could produce while trying not to laugh. "After all, cold water would numb the skin and you wouldn't be able to feel things like this..." I said as I licked and kissed along his jaw. When I got to his ear, I let out a long gust of hot air as I licked the shell of his ear.

I could have been mistaken in my distraction, but I was almost sure that his steps slowed, I only hoped that meant that I was accomplishing my task. I took a quick glance to the side and to my pleasure, saw that his eyelids were blinking slowly. I felt his jaw clench against the side of my face so I kept up my ministrations.

"I wouldn't want _other _parts to lose their feeling because of cold water, would you?"

"You – are a wicked, wicked woman." Then the most _evil_ grin spread across his mouth... "Lucky I know how to warm things up quickly then hey!"

_Oh Shit!_

I squealed as he leapt forward with me still in his arms. And yes... the water was just as cold as I thought it would be, colder actually...

=x=

The next twenty-four hours was spent in relative nakedness. Exploring this side of our relationship was something that I now craved. Even though Dimitri was still gentle and loving, our 'time' together had stepped up a notch. Every time he touched me it was like a 'hit' that fed my addiction to him, I couldn't get enough. We'd been at our mountain hideaway for a little over a day when my cell phone rang in our bedroom.

Dimitri was in the kitchen, he'd gone in there to start dinner. I was curled up on the lounge suite watching some crappy re-run, so I jumped up and ran into the room, flopping down onto the bed on my stomach.

"Hello?" I said quickly before it stopped ringing. There was a moment of silence before the caller responded.

"Rose?" I quickly pulled the phone away from my ear and looked at the name... Lissa_. _I could tell by her voice that something was wrong, and I'd been feeling a sense of 'unease' for the last couple of hours and hearing her voice only intensified it.

"Liss, what's wrong?" I asked quickly.

"I think I'm in trouble. Rose, I don't know what to do." She whispered at such a fast rate that I almost didn't understand her.

"Liss, calm down. What's going on?"

"You were right, you were right all along." I waited for her to continue but was only met by silence.

"Liss, are you still there? What do you mean?"

"They're trying to..."

"Liss..."

Nothing...

"Lissa!" I yelled out harder. I pulled the phone away from my ear and my breath caught as I saw that the call had been ended. I quickly typed in her number and pressed the call button. I closed my eyes to the feeling of dread that was rapidly encompassing my entire being as I waited for my phone to connect to Lissa's – but it didn't.

"SHIT!" I said harshly.

"Roza?" I heard from in front of me. I looked up to see Dimitri standing against the doorframe with a worried look on his face. "What's wrong?" He asked when he saw my face.

"Something's _very _wrong. That was Lissa. She said..." I swallowed the fear that had me firmly in its grip. "...she said that she was in trouble, she was whispering. I could hear she was scared. She said that I was right all along."

"I don't understand, right about what?"

"She didn't get to tell me before the line disconnected; I tried to call back but it's either flat or turned off because it goes straight to message. Something's wrong Dimitri."

"Call her mother; see if she's heard from Lissa." I nodded quickly and called Mrs D.

"Hi Rose, I wasn't expecting you to call, is something wrong?"

"Um, hi Mrs D. Um, have you heard from Lissa?"

"No, she went out with Mia last night before she goes to California with Eddie on Friday. I got a message saying that she was staying there and wouldn't be home, why?"

"I just got a phone call from her, she said that she was in trouble and she sounded really scared; something's wrong Mrs D."

"What did she say exactly?"

"That she was in trouble and didn't know what to do, she was whispering like she didn't want to be heard, she said that I'd been right all along and when she went to tell me what she meant by that, the line disconnected. Now her phone just goes to voicemail."

"Have you tried Mia?" She said after a short silence.

"No, I didn't know she was going there. Hang on for a tic." I looked over to Dimitri who was now sitting on the bed beside me. "Can you call Mia on your cell; apparently Liss went there last night."

"Okay." He got up and pulled his phone out of his overnight bag and pushed a few buttons before bringing the phone up to his ear. "Mia, it's Dimitri... yeah good, hey I was wondering if I could talk to Lissa for a minute..." His eye darted to me and I knew that Lissa wasn't with her last night... The image that went through my mind was a face that belonged to Nat... "When was the last time you spoke to her? Okay, I'll give him a call. We're not sure; I'll call you when we know more... yeah, thanks Mia, okay, bye."

"She didn't go to Mia's." Dimitri said confirming my thoughts.

"What did he say Rose?" Mrs D's voice at my ear pulled my thoughts back to the real time.

"She didn't go to Mia's place last night Mrs D."

"Mia got a text supposedly from Lissa yesterday saying that she wanted to spend the night with Christian and would she cover for her but that's the last she heard from her." Dimitri said as he sat back down beside me.

"Did you hear that?" I asked Mrs D.

"Yeah, have you spoken to Christian?" I could hear her voice carry a lot more concern as the seconds ticked by because she knew as well as I did, Lissa would never have acted this way; all this cloak and dagger stuff. She was eighteen, an adult and if she wanted to spend the night with Christian, she would have just said so...

"Not yet." I turned back to Dimitri and saw he was already dialling a number. It didn't take long for someone to answer.

"Hi Tash... yeah good, hey is Christian there? Not sure just yet, can I speak to him for a minute? Thanks..."

"Dimitri's calling Christian now Mrs D."

"Hey Christian... everything's good here yeah... I was wondering if you know where Lissa is? Oh Rose was wondering... Uh-huh... okay... hang on I'll let her know."

"What's going on?" Mrs D asked worriedly.

"Hang on, I'll find out..."

"He said that he got a text from her yesterday to say that she was going to spend the day with Mia and she'd call him later." Dimitri informed me.

"What's going on Rose? Lissa wouldn't do this." Lissa's mother said, her voice starting to break in worry.

"I know Mrs D, we're coming home now, we'll leave as soon as we have everything packed up. Ring Mr D, see if he's heard from her. I'll call you if I find out anything alright?"

"Okay, you really think something is wrong, don't you?"

"Yes, I do. Where's Nat?"

"I don't know why?"

"Was he home last night?"

"No, he went out with his father last night, something to do with business. Should I call him?"

"No, not yet. We'll be home soon, I'll talk to you then okay."

"Alright, drive carefully Rose."

"We will, see you soon." I reached out to Dimitri and he placed his cell in my hand. "Christian..."

"What's going on Rose? I heard some of what you were saying."

I went through what had happened with Lissa's strange call but I couldn't let on about my suspicions about Nat without having to go into the whole 'kiss' debacle and that was something that _I _didn't want to have to tell him... That was Lissa's mess to clean up. The whole time I was on the phone, my stomach churned.

"Call me when you get closer to home and I'll meet you there." Christian said before hanging up.

"He has her..." I whispered as I stared into the unused fireplace in our bedroom.

"Who?"

"Nat... and probably Viktor too."

"Why would they have her, aren't they family?"

"No. Her and Andre only call Viktor 'uncle' because he's known them since they were born, he went to college with Mr D; there's no actual blood relation between them."

"But why would you say that she's with _them_? Didn't you say she sounded scared? Why would she be scared of them?"

"I'm not sure, I just know that Nat kissed her and it stirred emotions that confused her. He wanted her to go on a 'proper' date with him because I guess he thought that she might really like him and he could steer her away from Christian."

"They kissed? Wow..."

"Yeah. Nat's used to getting whatever he wants, _when_ he wants and when he walked out of Starbucks the other day, I saw something in his eyes as he looked at Lissa; he wanted her. Now she's gone missing..."

_Oh god I feel ill..._

"Come on, go get dressed while I clean up outside. We'll drive back tonight." He smiled and gave me a quick kiss before standing up and walking over to the bedroom door. I quickly changed and whirled around the room on autopilot, throwing clothes and things into our large overnight bags. When I walked into the lounge room, Dimitri was on the phone while he grabbed our other things from around the room.

"Who was that?" I asked when he hung up.

"I just rang Mama to let her know we were coming home early. Are you ready?" He asked as he cupped his hand against my cheek.

My heart beat rapidly as my mind went in a hundred different directions. Where was she? Was she okay? _Did_ Nat do this... and if so was he hurting her? Was Viktor hurting her? As these thoughts flew through my mind faster and faster, I was faintly aware that my heart rate became faster too.

"Rose... Rose, look at me." Dimitri pulled my face up so that I was looking directly into his eyes, but his voice seemed so far away – echo-y... "Rose..." As my breathing increased and my vision blurred, I felt something softly hitting the side of my face... I squeezed my eyes and tried to pull myself back from the brink of hyperventilation, but that only made my thoughts focus on the fact that my stomach was turning like a washing machine...

"I'm gonna be sick..." I cried out. I turned away from Dimitri but I didn't make it one step from him before the contents of my stomach flew out of my mouth. "Oh God..." I muttered as I spat out the foul taste in my mouth. I retched again and continued to choke. I tried to push him away as he came to hold me up but he was having none of it. He held one hand around my stomach and the other held my hair away from my face.

"It's alright love, come with me." He said as I gained some sort of control over myself. My whole body shook on unstable legs as Dimitri's strong arms took my complete weight. Tears fell from my eyes and my throat burned as I tried to make it into the bathroom before I vomited again. After rinsing my mouth out, he pulled my body into his and sat us down on the floor.

"I'm sorry, I don't know why...?" I spluttered in between soft sobs.

"Shh... It's just shock Roza." Dimitri said as he held me in his arms as he rocked gently. My head was tucked securely under his chin as his hands rubbed my back soothingly; helping me to bring my nerves under some sort of control. "Up until now, you've done well coping with everything that's gone on in the last few weeks, this was just a bit more than your emotions could cope with right now."

"I'm so worried about her. I really can't see them hurting her but if they _do _have her, what are they doing that has her so scared?"

"I don't know Love but I'll do anything I can to help find her."

"Thank you." I said looking up at him. "We need to get going."

"You sure? We can take an hour or two longer if you need it."

"No... I need to get home, we need to find her." I was exhausted – physically, mentally and emotionally, but I had to help anyway I could, I had to make sure that Lissa's parents knew just how worried I was.

Dimitri helped me up off the bathroom floor and I rinsed my face with water. I didn't realise that Dimitri had left until I looked up to see him standing in the doorway with my toothbrush in his hand.

"You're a life saver." I said gratefully. His answering smile made me breathe a little easier. Soon we were on our way home, unsure as to what was going to be happening when we got there. "Oh Shit! I didn't cleanup..."

"I did... And don't get all..." he said waving his hands in the air; he must have noticed my horror at the thought of him having to clean up my vomit. "...I'm the product of a working mother remember and I have two younger sisters; there were many times when Karolina and I had to look after the younger ones and some of those times, they were sick. And just for the record, I've got a stronger stomach than my sister as far as vomit is concerned."

"Well, you'll be looking after _our_ kids when they're sick, because I'm a sympathetic vomiter..." I felt my face flame up as I realised what I'd just said, I bit my lip and glance to Dimitri to gauge his reaction.

I was met with smiling eyes above smiling lips. "Okay, deal."

_He is way too good to be true! _Mini me was standing admiring a gold ring on her left ring-finger and attached to that ring was another gold ring with a long gold chain stretched between them. Apparently _she_ was keeping him any way she could, even if it involved chains...

As Dimitri turned into my street, I saw Detective Morris' car parked by the curb outside the house.

"Did you call the police?" I asked nodding to the car.

"No."

Before we could make it to the front door though, it opened and the hopeful look on Mrs D's face soon crumpled; she was obviously hoping I was Lissa.

"Rose..." she muttered as she opened her arms to me.

"I'm sure she's fine Mrs D, you'll see." I said as I hugged her.

"Amy," Mr D called from inside. "Talk about this inside."

"Oh, of course..." she said backing away from the doorway. "How are you sweetie?" she asked as her eyes went to my bruised cheekbone. Then I remembered that she hadn't seen me since before Jesse attacked me for the second time.

"I'm good, it's just some bruises." I looked into the lounge room at the waiting faces and looked up when I felt Dimitri's hand take a hold of mine. It still amazed me how he seemed to know just when I needed his strength.

"I'm so sorry you went through all of that," Mrs D said as her eyes took in the bruises at the top of my chest and neck, "...but I'm glad that you were able to get away for a while and relax. I'm just sorry that..." Her words stuck in her throat as she looked to the floor.

"We'll find her Mrs D, I'm sure of it." I said as I put my free hand on her shoulder and we walked into the house further. By the fireplace Detective Bitchface just stood and looked at us or should I say _me_. I couldn't really tell what she was thinking by the look on her face.

"I need to talk to you later if you're up to it Rose." Detective Morris asked before I even opened my mouth. I could tell by her face that it had nothing to do with Lissa.

"Okay." I looked over to where Adrian sat with Andre and noticed him looking between Dimitri and our locked hands as his jaw clenched. "So has anyone got in touch with Nat or Viktor yet?"

"No, we haven't Rose." Mr D informed me.

_Of course not... _I thought as I rolled my eyes.

"I know everyone here bar me trusts those two, but I'm telling you all that they've been planning something for a while now, I don't know what, but they have been."

"What do you mean Rose?" Morris asked. Before I could answer, my cell phone started buzzing in my jeans pocket. I pulled it out and saw Christian's name, I realised that I hadn't called him like I said I would.

"Hi Christian. Yeah, I'm sorry, I forgot to call. Yeah, do you mind? Alright, thanks... I'll see you when you get here. Thanks..." I looked up and saw everyone looking at me. "That was Christian, he's going to go pick up Mia and then he'll be over. Before he gets here though, I need to let you all in on something that _could_ be relevant, but I would rather he didn't hear from anyone other than Lissa."

"What's going on Rose?" Mrs D asked.

"Last week, Nat and Lissa kissed. She's been really confused as to what it meant because of the fact that..."

"That what Rose?" Andre prompted. I could see he wasn't pleased with my little revelation.

"She was confused as to what she felt for Nat. She said that when they kissed, she felt something and because she's with Christian, she shouldn't have. Nat was of the opinion that because this 'one kiss' stirred up such strong feelings, then he wanted her to go on a _date_ with him to see if there was... any chance of it turning into more. You know she always had a crush on him growing up Andre and I think that _that_ is all it was, leftover childish fantasies, but she felt so guilty and confused, she was in just the right frame of mind for Nat to manipulate her."

"What reason would he have to manipulate anyone Rose, let alone Lissa?" Mr D asked me.

"I don't know but I've heard a few things over the last couple of weeks. I wasn't spying or anything, just wrong place, right time type of thing..."

"Like?" Morris asked as she scribbled in her notepad.

"Well, the morning after I had that nightmare and accidently hit Lissa..." I said to her parents, "...I couldn't go back to sleep so I went down to get something from the kitchen. Before I got there though, I heard Nat talking to Viktor. Nat said that he wouldn't 'push anything', I don't know what he meant by that but Viktor said that Nat knew what had to be done and expected him to do his part. It didn't sound like Nat was very happy about it and Viktor said if things didn't go the way he wanted, then he'd find another way to make it happen."

"Is that all, it sounds rather evasive..." Bitchface said.

"Yeah, I know. But then early one morning I heard Nat on the phone in Mr D's office. I don't really know who he was speaking to but I think he was talking to Natalie... his twin..." I said to Morris, seeing her confusion. "He spoke about not having a choice about something and that the person he was talking to was the only one who knew about his feelings for '_her_'... I'm not sure who 'her' is, but he could have been talking about Lissa. He got angry at the end of the call... He said, _'Because he'll never allow it, that's why!'_ He finished up the call just after that so I ran back to my room so he wouldn't know I'd heard anything."

"It still doesn't prove that they have anything to do with Lissa being missing." Morris said. I knew she was right but I was frustrated at how to convince them that they were behind this. I turned to Dimitri and was taken aback by look on his face.

"Dimitri, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Not sure. Something you said about Viktor 'finding a way to make it happen'... I've heard someone say that before."

"Who?" Morris asked.

"Ah, as you know I work for Guardian Security, Viktor is one of my clientele. I can't go into specifics but just over a week ago I accompanied him to one of his business meetings. While there, Viktor spoke very cryptically about this other mans daughter; if she was alright and if she'd be joining his business _and_ that the last part of the puzzle may take a couple of weeks to complete. That's when this other guy said he was sure that Viktor could _'make it happen'_."

"Did this other man mention the name of his daughter?" Bitchface asked.

"Not sure really, I don't know if it was her name or not but he said that 'Kiz was strong..."

"Kiz?" I butted in... "He said 'Kiz'?"

"Yes, why?"

"My father calls me that, it's Turkish for daughter."

"What's your father's name?" Dimitri asked me.

"Abe, you know that."

"Abe... As in... Ibrahim?" He asked as one eyebrow rose up his forehead.

"Yes... Viktor met with my father...? For a business deal?" _That can't be good... _"And he was asking about me? Mr D, did you know Viktor was dealing with my father?"

I got a cold chill run down my spine when Mr D's eyes went from his wife's, to the cops and then to Dimitri and me... of course he did.

"What's this all about?" I asked.

"I can't go into the business side of things Rose, you know that." Mr D said shortly.

"But this could have something to do with _Lissa_, they could _have_ her..."

"_Viktor_ wouldn't have anything to do with this Rose," he interrupted. "...he loves Lissa like a daughter, he would _never_ hurt her."

"_He's **not** who you think he is!_" I shouted as I stood up. "When Liss called me, she was scared, _really_ scared. She was about to tell me what was going on when the phone was cut off. What if they walked in on her trying to get help? She won't have any way to get back in touch with us now... You _have_ to believe me..."

Looking around the room, only two faces looked as though they believed me; Dimitri and Adrian... Andre looked like he wanted to believe me, but he'd known Viktor and Nat longer than Lissa and I had... Just then the front door opened and Christian, Mia and Tasha walked in...

_Oh, this is going to be fun..._


	29. Dimitri Lightning Won't Strike Twice

**Sorry I'm late guys. I've been sick with the flu and words don't come easy when you have a head full of fog! Thanks for being patient, and 'Achilles' will be a little behind too because of me being sick. I will try to have it up ASAP!**

**Thanks for all of your wonderful reviews, I couldn't get to reply but I did read them all, so thank you. They mean a lot. **

**Let's get on with it then... ;-)**

* * *

**Dimitri – Lightning Won't Strike Twice**

My mind was reeling. As I sat beside Rose, I tried to ensure my face didn't show any of the confusion that I was feeling right now. I'd never liked Dashkov, but it was my duty to ensure his safety whilst in my care. The whole time though, I'd had a bad feeling about him and his 'business' dealings.

When Rose mentioned that thing about Viktor 'making something happen'... the memory just popped into my head. I'd learned over the years to store any _odd _thing I heard away. Sometimes remembering those things gave me crucial information that had on occasion saved not only my life but that of whomever I'd been guarding at the time. And over the years, I'd learned who I had to pay closer attention to who I could trust and who I couldn't; Viktor was one person I knew _never _to turn my back on.

I was more than a little shocked to find out the relationship between Roza and the guy Viktor had business dealings with last week, but then thinking back to what he looked like, I could now see how much she resembled Ibrahim Mazur. When Rose asked Mr Dragomir if he knew about Viktor doing business with her father, I saw a look that I haven't seen in many years... and it was a look that I hoped never to see again. Fear, guilt and the look of being busted all passed over his features in a split second. He definitely had something to hide; maybe he wasn't as innocent in all of this as I'd originally thought.

Rose tried to question him but he did what all guilty men do, he evaded like a pro... His ignorance towards how dangerous Viktor is was disturbing; could he really be that blind? Rose was mere seconds from losing it and after what had happened at the cottage when Lissa rang saying that she was in trouble, I was damned sure that I wouldn't let her stress any more than she had to. Before anything more could be said though, the front door opened suddenly and Tasha, Mia and Christian walked with determination into the room.

"Has anyone heard anything yet?" He asked.

"No!" Rose yelled, "And no-one here seems to believe that Viktor and his lapdog son are behind this and that she's really in trouble here."

"Roza, calm down love." I said as I reached out and put my hand on her shoulder. She looked at me with eyes that shone with fire and fear and it broke my heart to think of even more of life's tribulations being dumped upon her shoulders.

"What's going on Dimitri?" Tasha asked me as Mia came and wrapped her arms around Rose.

"As far as we can tell, Lissa hasn't been seen since going out yesterday afternoon."

"Mia said that she'd got a text from her but there's confusion about what's really going on."

"Everyone here knows that Lissa would never send messages like those, that's not her style. If she wanted to go see Christian, she would have just told everyone where she was going; she would never be all cloak and dagger." Rose said, her voice slowly increasing as she spoke. "Why isn't anyone trying to find out where she is?"

"We are Miss Hathaway." Detective Morris said. "We need to know as many facts as we can before we go off half cocked. Following unsubstantiated theories will only result in the possibility of looking in the wrong direction."

"Unsubstantiated? Are you kidding me? After everything I told you before and you still don't believe me?"

"What things Rose?" Christian asked.

"Um..." I could see the look in her eyes; she was trying to work out what to say without letting him know about the kiss. "I've just heard Nat and his father speaking about what I can only describe as less than above board business and with Liss going missing, some of the things they spoke about have different meanings now."

"Like what? I have no idea what all that meant; what you just said." I could see Christian was reaching the end of his rope.

"Okay, okay... First, I'm assuming that Mia told you about the text she got yesterday?" she asked looking to Mia for conformation. "It was about spending the night with you and you got one saying she was spending the night with Mia; she wouldn't do that. Then Viktor kept talking about making sure the plan would 'happen' and making sure that Nat lived up to his part, I heard him say that he didn't think he could do what his father had asked..." I pulled Rose into my body, seeing how worked up she was getting, but it was like she wasn't even aware of me once she started listing all of her theories. "I know he likes someone, but I'm not sure who... He's been manipulating Lissa, telling her things on the sly and he's convinced that she has feelings for him..."

"Hang on..." Christian interrupted as he squeezed his eyes shut. "Why on earth would he be convinced that she has feelings for him?"

"Because he does..." she almost yelled. I could see Christian's mouth open ready to argue but Rose didn't give him a chance before continuing. "I got a phone call from her a few hours ago saying that she's in trouble and that I was right all along... I didn't know what she meant at first, but now... I kept telling her that they were up to no good and couldn't be trusted, now neither of them are here and we can't get any of them on their cells... Liss, Nat _or_ Viktor; something is going on and I am positive they have her, or they at least know where she is. And if we just keep sitting here on our _asses_ talking instead of trying to find her then..."

"Roza..." She was shaking now and her breathing was starting to escalate. If she didn't calm down, she was going to pass out again.

"Okay Miss Hathaway, say that we take your word for it and the Dashkov's have Lissa. Why... what motive could they possibly have to take her when they're so close to this family?" Detective Ivanson asked.

"I honestly don't know." Rose said. "I'm not the detective..."

At the detectives question, I thought about all the times and places I'd been with Dashkov. If Rose was right and they had Lissa, what _could _their motive be? I know men like Viktor, I'd grown up around people like him and in my line of work, I guarded them too. Men like him never said or did anything that didn't have a reason.

He wanted his son to do something; something that Nat seemed to be a less than enthusiastic participant in. Nat and Liss kissed and then Nat seemed to be pushing her to leave Christian for him. Viktor on the other hand seemed to be overly interested in whether or not Rose would be joining her father's business.

I'd heard Abe say after he signed those contracts that the 'funds' would be transferred in 24 hours, so it wasn't a stretch of the imagination to say that he was providing funding for something. Then there was the weapons manufacturer and Eric's involvement in what I thought was the future development of weapons with some sort of 'medical' component. All of these facts were taking my mind quickly to many suspicious areas.

I hadn't actually been looking at anyone or anything while my mind roamed but when I looked up I found myself looking directly into the eyes of Detective Morris. I could see she'd been watching me for some time and when her eyebrow lifted slightly in question, I wondered if I should voice my thoughts out loud. I looked to my left and saw that Mia was still beside Rose so I thought of an excuse to leave the house for a minute.

"Rose, do you mind staying with Mia for a minute, I really need to make a phone call."

"Yeah, I'm fine." She mumbled. I quickly looked back to Morris before walking out the front door. It was less than a minute later that I heard the front door open behind me.

"Is there something I should be aware of Mr Belikov?" Morris asked me.

"I'm not really sure." I said truthfully. "Today's events have made me... remember and question some of the things I've seen and heard. In my line of work we're trained to look out for things that everyone else may overlook."

"And have you seen things that concern you?"

"Yes. Mr Dashkov is my client and as such I'm to keep what I'm privy to, private. But if he or his son has Lissa, and I'm inclined to believe they do, then I think that you need to be aware of a few things."

"Okay, let me hear it."

"Well, first of all, I share Rose's 'distrust' of the Dashkov men, especially Viktor. I've had to guard him on many of his business deals over the last few weeks. Are you aware of whom Rose's father is, what line of business he's in?"

"Yes, what does that have to do with anything?"

"Just over a week ago, Viktor had a meeting with him. Documents were signed and Mr Mazur said that the 'funds' would be transferred within 24 hours. Mr Dashkov asked after Mazur's daughter, whom I now know is Rose and wanted to know if she would be joining the business in the near future; even then I thought he seemed overly interested in such a seemingly irrelevant line of conversation. Mazur then wanted to know when everything would be finalised to which Viktor said that most would be complete by the next day but another part of the puzzle would be finalised within two weeks."

"I'm not following..."

"I know. After that we picked up Mr Dragomir and we went to Morgoi Industries where even though no actual words were said, I was made completely aware that what went on in that room was to remain _in_ that room. As I've said, I've dealt with people like Mr Dashkov before, I know his type. They were making deals that concerned weapons with medical applications."

"Medical...? As in... biological?"

"I could be wrong but yes, that is what I believe. Now, as I've said, Viktor went to Mazur for some sort of financial backing and he got it, but Mr Dragomir was not present. Then after picking him up from Dragon Medical, they both went to Morgoi where Dashkov's son just happens to have a summer internship. Rose told me a little while ago that Viktor wanted him to put in a good word at Morgoi for a business deal he wanted in on, but to keep their relationship out of it. Apparently Natoli is going by his mother's maiden name there."

"Okay, I agree that something with Viktor Dashkov isn't sitting well with me, but what does that have to do with Lissa? What possible reason could they have for taking her?"

"I'm not sure; the timing is just way too coincidental though. Viktor's insistence that 'one part of the puzzle' would be complete in a couple of weeks, only for Liss to go missing in a couple of weeks..." I reasoned with a shrug of my shoulder. "And from what Rose has told me, Natoli sounded as if he was being force into doing something that he really didn't want to do, then he kissed her and then seized on her confusion and tried to make her leave Christian for him... I'm with Rose on this one; I think she's with them. I don't know why, but I think it has something to do with all of Dashkov's business dealings."

"Hmm, I wonder if Mr Mazur knows anything? If he's provided financial backing for something, he may know more than we think."

Just then a memory sparked in my mind... Mikhail... He was so quiet and – reserved after that meeting with Rose's father. I'd meant to ask him what went on when I wasn't in there with them but forgot after everything else happened that day.

"What's wrong... did you remember something else?" Morris asked seeing my demeanour change.

"Not really, I just need to make a call."

"Okay, I'll leave you to it."

"No, no, stay... it may have some relevance." I said as I pulled my cell phone out of my jeans pocket. I scrolled through my contacts list and found Mikhail's number. He answered on the third ring.

"Tanner..."

"Mikhail, it's Dimitri."

"Dimitri... what can I do for you?"

"Well, I'm not quite sure just yet. Are you working right now?"

"Not anymore, I just finished, why?"

"Good, good, I'll get to that in a minute... listen, last week when we took Viktor Dashkov to those meetings..."

"Yeah?" He said hesitantly.

"When we went to Lammergeyer Imports, you went in alone at first. I noticed that you seemed disturbed by something afterwards. I meant to ask if everything was alright but I forgot. Did something happen that made you uneasy?"

"Ah... not at first but as I got to thinking about it, things just didn't sit right with me."

"About what?" I asked. I had a sense that something _had _happened and that maybe it would steer us in the right direction.

"Dashkov and Mazur were just making small talk at first, you know how it goes. Then Mazur asked Dashkov how his son was. He didn't say anything at first, just smiled and then said that his internship had given him 'wonderful opportunities' but that it was in his private life where he'd grown so much. Apparently his son has been seeing someone for a while and it's become very serious in a very short period of time."

The hairs started standing up on the back of my neck. "Nat's seeing someone?"I knew Rose had said that he liked someone but I hadn't actually seen him with anyone other than Rose and Lissa. If he had, Rose would know about it and if not her, then one of the guys definitely would have.

"Yeah, Dashkov said he wouldn't be surprised if his son came home one day and said that he'd asked her to marry him. Mazur went to congratulate him but when he asked who the lucky lady was, Dashkov said he didn't know; that Nat had been keeping her to himself and would introduce them when the time was right."

_Weird... _"But why did that make you uneasy?"

"Well, as I said, it didn't at first... But then he said that he wouldn't have a problem with his son getting serious so fast as long as the girl came from a family with money, because aside from the 'gold digging' thing, a woman should only enhance her husband in _all_ aspects of his life, privately and financially."

A strange felling of clarity washed over me as things started coming together in my mind. Images of a jewellery store and best wishes to the 'happy couple' came back to me with a vengeance. "Were you assigned to him on Monday when I wasn't working at all Mikhail?"

"Yeah, I was partnered with Arthur Schoenberg for the day."

"Where did you go?"

"Ah, we picked up Mr Dragomir and then went back to Morgoi but Arthur and I had to wait at the car this time. When Viktor and Mr Dragomir came back outside, they had another guy with them, a young guy in his early twenties I suppose, tall and lanky with black hair. I'd seen him in the boardroom the first time we went there. I don't know his name, we weren't introduced." _Nat..._

"Then where?"

"Ah, we dropped Dragomir back at his laboratory and then Dashkov had us drive him and the young guy out to some cabin in the middle of nowhere. Apparently they were meeting people out there to celebrate the finalisation of a huge deal."

"Was anyone there when you dropped them off?"

"No, we took a look around before he let us go for the day. I was going to argue because there were no other vehicles around but he said that they'd get a ride home with friends... so we left. What's all this about Dimitri?"

I took a deep breath trying to reign in my growing panic... "It may be nothing. But would you know how to get back to this cabin?"

"Certainly."

"Hang on for minute." I said putting my hand over the mouthpiece. I tried as best I could to relay what I'd just been told but when I told her that Viktor had been to the jewellers and the owner had said to congratulate the happy couple; her mind went to the same place as mine.

"You don't think...?" She asked hesitantly.

"Unfortunately yes... Whatever he bought at the jewellers, he did so _before_ Nat kissed Lissa; if he bought what we're both thinking, then it was definitely part of a plan... a 'part of the puzzle' as he put it..." She instantly got my meaning and was putting everything I'd said together in her mind.

"Okay, so... say that they do have her and are trying to force her into a marriage, how do they think they're going to make everyone here believe it's something that Lissa wanted, you heard Dragomir, he's sure that Viktor would never do anything against the family. _And _if they could accomplish that, then how would they convince her to go along with it if it wasn't something she wanted?"

I looked around as I thought about her question... "As far as everyone here, Rose did say that Liss told of her confusion; that she'd felt something for Nat because of the kiss... As far as Lissa not saying anything – Dashkov is definitely the sort of person who wouldn't even flinch at delivering threats of bodily harm; either to her or her family if it meant he'd get what he wanted. Mikhail knows where the cabin is that he dropped the Dashkov's at." I raised my eyebrows in question; she knew what I was asking.

"I can't go in without a search warrant."

"No, but we can." I said with a slight grin. My mind quickly came up with an excuse and I got back to Mikhail, making arrangements to have him meet me here in an hour's time. The cops couldn't go check things out but we could.

Morris and I made our way back inside and we quickly started telling everyone what we'd been talking about outside.

"NO! That's a load of bullshit... Viktor would _never _do that to us... to Lissa." Eric yelled.

"I agree, Nat would never hurt Lissa like that, he grew up with her for shit sake." Andre said from where he was sitting.

I found Rose looking at Christian. Unfortunately, everything had to be laid on the table for my theory to be explained; including the kiss. I could see by his expression that he'd been crushed by what he'd heard. He was standing at the French doors that led out into the garden with his hands in the pockets of his jeans, just staring; his mind elsewhere.

Rose got up from where she was sitting in between Mia and Lissa's mother, while everyone yelled and screamed and walked over to Christian. She stood a few feet away from him for a few before speaking to him. I don't know what she said, I couldn't hear her but Christian's head shook slowly side to side before he dropped his chin to his chest. I turned back to everyone else to see where the conversation was going, only to see Tasha standing beside me.

"Do you really think this is what's going on?" she asked.

"Yeah, I do, and I also think that if we don't hurry up, then we may be too late."

As the words left my mouth, I heard a knock at the front door. Leaving everyone to their bickering, I turned around and answered it.

"Thanks for coming Mikhail." I said as I shook his hand. I ushered him inside and introduced him, Eric being the only person here who knew him. Because he'd been with me at the meetings and because of the conversation we'd had on the phone an hour ago, there were only a few things that I had to make him aware of to bring him up to speed. The two detectives told us what we could and could not do once we got to the cabin so that we couldn't be charged with anything. We quickly went over a 'plan of attack' so to speak.

"I'm coming with you." Rose said firmly. I could see by her eyes she was determined but after everything she'd been through, I didn't think it would be a good idea.

"You can't Rose, we're going in under the guise of business, and if you came with us then we wouldn't be able to pull it off."

"Then I'll go with the cops, they have to hang back until you give the word and once everything is clear, then there's no problem if I'm there, is there?"

I let out a soft growl of frustration at her stubbornness. "Yes there is. Rose you have been through..."

"Don't give me that bullshit Dimitri, this is Lissa we're talking about... if she's in trouble then I'm going." Her chin lifted up, challenging me to say no again. When I let out a sigh, the corners of her mouth lifted and I couldn't help but smile back at her.

"You can come on one condition." Before she could say anything, I continued. "You are to stay away from the cabin until I come and get you, alright? No matter how long it takes _or _what you see or hear."

"But..."

"No Rose, I mean it. I know men like Viktor; they surround themselves with men who are capable of anything so they can keep their hands clean." I reached up and stroked my thumb over her cheek as I looked deeply into her eyes; I needed her to understand, to remember. "I can't lose you..." When I saw the light of understanding come into her eyes, I bent forward and kissed her lips softly. "Please..."

"Okay." She said simply. I wasn't completely sure if I believed her; in the time I've known her, she's never been one to think before she acts, I just hope this time she would. I pulled her into my arms and kissed the top of her head. I would do anything if it meant keeping her safe.

Adrian and Andre both wanted to come as well but I made sure to explain how they would simply react out of worry and fear for Lissa and that would only cause harm to either her, themselves or those who were trying to save her. They nodded to me that they would stay behind but I could see by Andre's eyes that he had no plans on staying home any longer than it took for him to sneak away. When Morris came over to where I was standing with Rose, I told her of my suspicions.

"Rose, before we get moving on this, I was wondering if I could have that talk with you real quick?" she asked.

"Ah, yeah, of course." She said nervously. I followed her as she turned and started to walk towards the kitchen; Morris a few steps behind me.

"I know this probably isn't a good time, but I need to talk about Mr Zeklos."

Rose's face glazed over and her body stiffened slightly at the mention of his name. I stood beside her were she'd sat upon one of the kitchen stools and reached around to put my hand against the base of her neck.

"What about him?"

"Well, he was released from hospital about thirty-six hours after we took him from your mother's house and then taken into custody. He has a broken nose, two broken ribs, a fracture to his left cheekbone and a blowout fracture to the orbit of his left eye. He's found himself a few teeth less than when he woke up on Monday morning too."

I couldn't help but be more than a little bit proud of my girl. I felt my eyebrow rise as she looked up at me. I tried not to look too happy about the state of his injuries but I couldn't help it; he deserved everything he got... more actually. I know that if I'd got a hold of him, he'd be in a _lot_ worse condition than he was, in fact I'm pretty sure he'd no longer be breathing if I had.

"His arraignment has been scheduled for the 25th of this month, along with Ralf Sarcozy and Aaron Voda. Additional charges were laid against Mr Zeklos at the hospital on Monday evening stemming from his attack during the day." Morris informed us. "I will need to speak to you in the next day or two so we can go over a few things, but that can wait for the time being, just let me know when you're ready."

"I will; thank you Detective Morris."

"Okay, we should get going. I'll see you outside."

With that Morris went back into the lounge room and I turned to the quiet woman beside me. When she looked up at me, her eyes narrowed as she took in my expression.

"What's that look for?" she asked.

"I always knew you'd be a badass." The smile on my face widened before a snort of laughter made its way out of me.

"Don't you forget it Comrade." She said as she punched me softly in the arm. "You know, my mother used to say something that I never fully understood until now."

"And what's that?"

"That some people are only alive because it's against the law to kill them. I missed my chance..."

"No Roza," I said as I moved to stand in front of where she sat, "...he may deserve death for what he's done not only to you, but to all the other girls, but that is one thing you don't ever want hanging over your head. He's scum but _that _is something that you can never change and over time... you'll wish you could, no matter who it was."

I could see that she wanted to ask me if that meant that I'd taken a life but we didn't have time to get into all of that... time was short, we needed to go.

"Come on, we need to go find Lissa and bring her home." I moved out of her way as she pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth as she stood up beside me but she didn't go to move.

"Promise me you'll find her." She said softly. "...and you won't let them get away with what they've done."

I turned her around by her shoulders and put my fingers under her chin to raise her face up to mine. "If she is in fact with them at this cabin, I will bring her straight out to you and I will do everything in my power to ensure they don't get away with what they've done." That was the best promise I could give under the circumstances and I could see by her expression that she picked up on my 'half-promise'. She nodded and stepped into my arms; her grip around my waist told of her anxiety. I bent down and placed another kiss atop her head before bending down and lifting her off the ground. I had only meant to bring her up so that I could bury my face into her hair and let the scent of her skin flood my senses but she wrapped her legs around my waist and my body reacted to having her so close.

She pulled her head back and stared into my eyes for a few seconds before bringing her mouth to mine. "Ungh..." I moaned. Her taste, the silky touch of her tongue against mine instantly made everything around us disappear, yet brought her into clear focus. One of my hands snaked up her back and into her hair as the kiss deepened, my other hand made its way downward where I kneaded her beautiful backside. Thankfully she moaned and pushed her chest into mine; effectively bringing me out of the fog of lust that she had quickly enveloped me in and this was neither the time_ nor_ the place to go any further, but God help me I wanted to... I turned around and placed her on top of the kitchen bench that was behind us.

"If there wasn't a house full of people less than twenty feet from us right at the moment, you'd be..." My statement stopped abruptly as her hand came into contact with the evidence of my desire. I hissed through my teeth and closed my eyes as she slid her hand up and down against my now rock solid erection.

"I'm gonna hold you to that lover... literally." She literally purred.

Holding her wicked hands to my chest, I spoke as seductively as she just did. "You should know me by now Roza; I _never_ say _any_thing I don't mean." I gave a quick sweep of her face and body and could see that she was far more relaxed than she's been since Lissa's phone call, but I knew that was about to change. I only wished I could give her more of a respite from her worries. I held my hand out to her and she closed her eyes briefly before trying to smile at me... it came off a little more like a grimace, but I knew she was trying.

After helping her down, I led her out to where everyone else was waiting. I noticed that Ivanson was no longer in the room and Morris told me that she was outside checking on a few things.

Two minutes later... we were on the road. I had to go home first and change into my work clothes, this had to look authentic.

"Promise me Roza." I said as I held her face in my hands outside my mother's house. I'd changed and we were about to leave, but I had to make sure she would be safe if something went horribly wrong with the plan.

"I'll stay with the detectives; you won't have to worry about me I promise." Somehow, that didn't sound like the promise I'd meant for her to give me...

"Belikov, we have to go." Mikhail yelled out, pulling my attention away. I gave a quick nod in reply and then bent down and softly pressed my lips against hers, loving how she bends her body into me.

"Be safe." She whispered against my lips.

"Always love..."

She pulled away from me and I watched as she walked over to the detective's car and climbed into the back seat. I smiled at her before climbing into the car beside Mikhail.

"Hathaway?" Tanner grumbled. "As in... boss... Hathaway?" I'd been waiting for this since the moment Detective Ivanson called out to Rose at the Dragomir's driveway as we were leaving. I saw Mikhail initial confusion and then his eyes roll as he connected the dots but because Rose drove with us to my house, this was the first chance he had to actually ask me for conformation.

"Yup... Rose is Janine's daughter."

I turned to watch his face as he mulled over this latest bit of information and was almost thankful for the silence... until he burst out laughing.

"Oh shit..." he guffawed and wiped at his eyes. "Does she know?"

"Yes, she does. She... caught us... kissing... on Monday."

"You're kidding..." He turned to stare at me open mouthed before starting to chuckle again. "I bet _that_ went down like a lead balloon... How are you still walking?"

"I'm walking fine, as you can very well see for yourself and no, she wasn't too pleased at first, but we're both adults and plus, there's nothing she can do about it now... we're together." I couldn't help but think of the moment when we finally came together.

"_... I love your innocence. I'll go slow, just let me know if you want me to stop, alright." The love I felt for this woman right at this moment as I looked into her eyes almost overwhelmed me. _

"_Okay." She said without hesitation._

_I wanted nothing more than to instantly bury myself into her body but I knew I had to take things slow. Her body had yet to experience this and would naturally tense at the feeling of being invaded. As I positioned myself at her entrance, I couldn't help but look down at her body beneath mine; I wanted to remember this moment forever. I smiled as I saw her skin prickle in response to my nearness. _

_Slowly I pushed my hips forward, easing my way inside of her slick heat. I had to think of something else but the feeling of her surrounding me; otherwise I'd end up pushing too hard, too fast. Three more pushes, progressing further in each time, I felt resistance; I knew what that meant. I stopped knowing that I was about to cause her pain, I just hoped that it would be too bad. _

"_What's wrong?" She asked. _

_I'd dreamt of being here, inside of her for so long... Instinct took over as I looked into her deep brown eyes; I took her mouth and her tongue as I pushed forward and took her innocence. I knew the moment she felt it. Her body tightened as she felt the sting of her delicate flesh tearing. _

_I pulled back slightly but I couldn't make myself stop kissing her. I opened my eyes just before she opened hers and I saw them change as she started to relax around me. _

"_Okay...?" I asked._

"_Yeah." _

"You didn't!" My friend's voice pulled me out of my near perfect recall.

"What?" I said as I cleared my throat and shift in my seat so that I could readjust myself.

"You _did_... Oh man...I know _that _look, that's the 'I just laid' look... Is she a wild one?"

"Don't go there Mikhail." I warned. He knew he'd overstepped, he nodded and turned his attention back to the road. I on the other hand, went back to my previous thoughts.

Nearly forty minutes later, we pulled off the highway, onto a dirt side-road. It was extremely remote out here, if Lissa was here and tried to scream; no-one would've heard her. I also doubt she would've gotten help in a timely manner if she'd happened to run and get away from them either. Mikhail picked up his phone and pressed a few buttons before bringing it up to his ear.

"I'll be turning off in about ten minutes; the cabin is only about 150 feet down the road after that." Obviously he was talking to Ivanson in the car behind us but then hung up before anything more could be said.

"Okay... you're confident with what we have to do?" I asked as he kept driving.

"Yup. I still don't know if it was the right thing or not by not bringing the boss in on this."

"She wouldn't have gone along with it and you know it."

"And if they call?" I knew he was talking about the Dashkov's.

"Then you'll get to see how quick I think on my feet."

He gave a snort of amusement before his face became serious. "Do you really think she's here, with them?"

"Yes. Now we just have to make sure we get her out without getting hurt."

He nodded as he turned to the left and up ahead, I saw the cabin. It wasn't what I was expecting really, it was a lot smaller and more rundown than I thought acceptable for someone like Viktor. As Mikhail turned into the gravel driveway, we saw the number of cars parked around one side of the cabin. I gave a quick glance to my partner before opening my door.

Without reservation I walked to the front door of the cabin, Mikhail on my left, three steps behind me. Glancing to the windows on my right, I notice the room seemed empty, so before knocking, I walked softly towards it to get a better look inside.

Bending down, I confirmed that the front room was in fact empty. Bottles of wine in various states of fullness littered the room either in or out of small silver buckets, a few lay empty on the floor. I made my way back to the door and looked to Mikhail, silently asking if he'd seen anything through the other window to the left of the door. Shaking his head to the negative, I raised my hand to knock.

_KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK_

I stood with my hands behind my back as I waited for a reply. When none seemed forthcoming, I motioned with my right hand for Mikhail to look into the window that I'd just looked in, to see if anyone was coming. I wasn't expecting anyone to be and when he shook his head 'no', I realised that we were going to have to go around the back. I brought my hand up to my waist were my two-way radio hung at my hip and pressed the button three times. This was something that we'd discussed when working out our plan of attack with Morris and Ivanson; they now knew that we were going around the back of the cabin.

I went first, Mikhail picking up his previous position behind me. Because the cabin was so isolated, there was no fencing on the property so explaining our presence would be a lot easier. As we made our way closer to the rear of the building, I could hear that people were in fact out here. I indicated to Mikhail what was going on and he pulled his jacket around behind his weapon holster.

No-one really noticed me as I stepped around the corner of the cabin for quite a while, but I could definitely see everyone else, including Lissa. I took a few steps forward and gained the attention of a few people. One touched Viktor's shoulder before speaking to him and then his eyes were on me. His eyes darted to where his son stood beside Lissa and I knew that he could see me taking in what was happening.

As he stood up and started to walk towards me, Lissa turned her head. The instant her eyes locked onto me, they went from dull and lifeless to wide and fearful; darting between Nat, Viktor and me. Sensing Lissa's nervousness, Nat looked at her and then turned to see what had her so frightened... even at this distance I could see the color drain from his face when his eyes met mine.

"What in the _hell_ are you doing here?" Dashkov senior growled as he got closer to me.

"We came here to check up on you sir." I informed him. "After telling our boss where you asked us to leave you, she wanted us to come out and make sure that you were alright." My eyes darted back over to Lissa and I could see her crying as she and Nat argued silently.

"We're fine, go away. _NOW_!"

"What's going on here?" I asked nodding towards Lissa and ignoring his demands.

"None of your business, now leave..."

"I can't do that Mr Dashkov." Again my eyes darting over to Lissa, Nat was now trying to pull her back towards the back door of the house. "Miss Dragomir," I yelled out. "...can I have a word please?"

The twenty or so people gathered all started to stand up and face me and I reached up to scratch my ear, indicating to Mikhail that he needed to call for the detectives.

"She's busy." Dashkov said. "You were not called here Belikov, you're not invited... leave."

"I can't see her father, where is he?" I asked after skimming my eyes through the small crowd.

"Inside, he's busy too."

"Well, it won't take long to make sure that everything here is okay and then I'll be on my way. Miss Dragomir...?"

"Natoli, take her inside." Viktor said without taking his eyes from me.

"I wouldn't do that." I said loud enough so that Nat could hear me too. "Lissa, walk to me please." She looked petrified and unsure as to what to do. I gave a small nod as I held her eyes with mine. Without turning to look at Nat, she pulled her arm away from him and walked towards me.

"Lissa..." he hissed behind her. I could tell by his face that he was almost as fearful as she was. "...please."

She didn't stop walking. Her bottom lip quivered as tears fell down her cheeks.

"Lissa." I greeted as she walked in front of me. "Does your family know what's going on here today?"

"Of course they do, they're inside." Viktor said once more.

"Then why aren't they out here with everyone else?" I asked him. "Lissa?"

"Um..."

"Walk behind me please, Lissa." I held my hand out toward her while not taking my eyes off the man in front of me. I saw her start to reach out to my hand when I saw his shoulder move, indicating that he was about to make a sudden move.

"STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" I shouted as I drew my weapon, pointing it towards Dashkov.

Then all hell broke loose... Dashkov didn't stop his movement, he grabbed Lissa round the waist as the group men and women behind him either started running for their lives or pulling their own weapons. Lissa screamed as Dashkov pulled her hard against him and drew his own weapon, pointing it towards me.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!" Mikhail yelled behind me.

"You had your chance to leave Belikov and you blew it." Dashkov said eerily. "You should have just turned around and minded your own bloody business."

"Put the weapon down Dashkov." Mikhail ordered behind me. "Let the girl go."

"I don't think so..." He started to take a step backwards as we heard the siren. I could see out of the peripheral of my vision that most of the people here were now gone, only the few loyalist stuck around.

"You don't think you're going to get away do you Dashkov?" I asked him.

"I won't need to; the police have no reason to come here."

"Oh, I think there's plenty of reason." Tanner said behind me.

"Ah... but you're the only two here that have a problem with today's festivities, isn't that right _daughter." _I heard the veiled threat in his words; he planned to kill us before the police arrived... But having Lissa in front of him meant that I couldn't shoot at him.

"I'm _not_... your... daughter." Lissa growled through clenched teeth. Then before any of us realised what she was going to do, Lissa grabbed Viktor's arm that was holding the gun and twisted it sharply upwards. Next thing, his gun went off... Instinct had me somehow holster my weapon as I leapt forward then I grabbed for Dashkov's raised arm while trying to pull Lissa out of his grip.

"SHOTS FIRED, SHOTS FIRED..." We heard Morris yell behind us.

"Mikhail!" I yelled as I finally yanked her away from Viktor and behind me.

"_Police_... Drop your weapons... _NOW_!" Even though I wasn't looking at her directly, I could see Ivanson on the other side of the yard; her weapon drawn on the others whose weapons were trained on Tanner and I. "I won't tell you again! _Drop them!_"

Dashkov and I fought and his free hand struck the side of my face in a vain attempt to distract me from taking his weapon; it didn't work. I brought my fist up into the top of his gut at the same time I twisted his hand into a position that hands were not designed to go into; it didn't do the bones a lot of good. He screamed out as the bones snapped and he dropped to the ground.

"_Stay _down..." I growled at him as I clutched at the collar of his shirt, but he wasn't ready to give up just yet. He tried to kick out but he was in the wrong position to do so. I was sick of this shit; I had to make sure that Lissa was alright and that Nat didn't get away... My arm pulled back and I planted a quick succession of two jabs to the side of his head. I was about to give him another one, but I didn't need to. His body went slack in my hand and his eyes rolled backwards as he fell slack-jawed to the ground.

Still in the same position, I turned my head to look at where I could hear Lissa screaming obscenities at the prone form in front of me.

"... fuckin' _prick_! I'll _kill_ you... I hope you fucking rot in _hell!_" She screamed in rage. Her whole body was shaking as she fought against the restraining arms of my partner. I nodded to him to let her go and then grabbed her as she sprang forward.

"Lissa stop! You're safe..." I said to her.

"Let me go, I'm going to kill the bastard!"

"Lissa stop..."

BANG!

Lissa's verbal rage stopped as I jumped. A shot rang out behind me from what I assumed was inside the house.

_Belikov! _Morris' voice called out through the two-way. _I need you out the front, now. _

"Lissa, stay here with Mikhail, do you understand? Lissa...?"

"She'll be fine... go!" Mikhail said as he reached out for Lissa's arm while still holding his gun towards where Viktor laid. I gave a quick nod and took off towards the front of the house.

"_Christian_!"

_I know that voice... Rose..._

I turned the corner in the next second, only to see Christian on the ground, a good twenty feet from the front of the house; Rose at his side... My eyes instinctively flicking up Rose's body and I saw that she was bleeding on her arm... To my left, Morris was kneeling on the back of none other than Natoli Dashkov, his arms cuffed as she called for backup; a 9 mm lay on the ground a few feet away from him.

"Don't you fuckin' close your eyes, Christian!" I turned back at the sound of Rose's voice. "_CHRISTIAN!"_

* * *

**A/N:** I thought everyone would get a little kick out of knowing why I chose that name for Abe's company... Well one of the birds of prey in Turkey is the Lammergeyer or 'Bearded Vulture'... I thought it was a little appropriate! hehehe


	30. Chapter 23 Crazy, Just Plain Crazy

**A/N: There's a little at the end... :-)**

* * *

**Chapter 23 Crazy, just plain crazy.**

"It's been too long..." I said worried. I wasn't exactly sure how long it had been since Dimitri and Mikhail had gone to the cabin, but every second we didn't hear anything pulled even more of my frayed nerves out into the open.

"It hasn't really Rose, it's only been ten minutes. We'll hear something when there's something to hear." I stared open mouthed at the utter bull that was spewing from Detective Bitch's mouth, wondering if she actually took a class at the police academy on 'How to Speak Rubbish at Every Opportunity 101.'

Just then the two detective's radios sounded three staticy beeps; I remembered Dimitri saying that that would be the signal of them going around the back of the house. Did that mean that no-one was there? My heartbeat picked up at what that could mean. _Shit... _if not, Liss could be anywhere. There hadn't been a call from home to say that she'd returned or they'd got in touch with her or the Dashkov's... If they weren't here, they could be anywhere.

I was just about to claw my way out of the car when one long, loud staticy beep sounded... They're calling for back-up!

"Stay in the car." Morris yelled as she and Ivanson clambered out of the car with their weapons drawn. I watched as they ran to the street on the other side of the dirt road where we'd parked. I knew from what Mikhail had said when we got here that the cabin was only a little way down the road... God I hope they got there in time.

I jumped in my seat at a noise behind me and I turned to look out the rear window of the car. I might have screamed a little when the boot of the car lifted up... _What the f..."_

"Christian?" I couldn't believe what I was seeing... The shaggy black mop of hair was the first thing I saw, then his piercing blue eyes... "What... how..." I watched as he walked around to my door and opened it.

"You didn't think I was going to stay at the house and not try to help her did you?"

I couldn't help but smile. "You're quick... I didn't even see you leave the house." I said as I climbed out of the car.

"Nat's a master manipulator; I'll reserve judgement until I talk to Liss."

"You're a good man Christian."

"Yeah, whatever... You coming?"

"We were told to wait here." Christian's head tilted to the right as he pursed his lips.

"So... I'm going alone then?"

"Not friggin likely." I smiled again as he winked conspiringly at me.

"Come on then, let's go help save our girl."

We took off at a fairly fast run, after all my training with Dimitri, I found it easy... I was surprised that Christian was able to keep up with me though. The closer we got to the cabin, the more we could hear yelling...

"Bloody hell..." Christian mumbled as we ran. "Hurry up Rose; I've got a bad feeling."

We could hear the detectives yelling as we started to run up the driveway and then we heard screaming... Lissa screaming, I'd recognise her voice anywhere. I couldn't hear the exact words but there was no mistaking the venom behind them. We were only about fifty or so feet from the front of the cabin when the front door opened and Nat came running out... with a gun.

"You fucking _PRICK_! _Where_ is she? What have you _done_ to her?" Christian screamed as he picked up his speed.

"Christian, _NO!_..." I yelled. I too picked up my speed, hoping to stop him before reaching Nat.

"I've done nothing..." Nat growled angrily. "I tried to stop him... I tried to work something else out." Nat's eyes flicked to me and narrowed as if in pain.

"I'm gonna _kill_ you!" Christian snarled. I finally got my hands around Christian's arm but he was intent on getting to Nat.

"Chris, stop..." I said loudly. His steps never faulted as he tried to pull his arm out of my grip but all he managed to do was pull me in front of him... just as Nat lifted his gun. That's when it all went pear-shaped; everything that happened next, happened in what felt like one or two seconds at them most. Something behind Nat made him turn his head but it quickly came back to us...

"Stay back Christian..." Nat warned. "Just let me leave."

"_Never!"_

BANG!

"ARGH!" I screamed as white hot pain seared through the shoulder muscle of my arm. My eyes were closed as I felt my body move but the pain was all I was aware of... it hurt like a bitch! I gasped as I opened my eyes and found myself looking down at Christian, who was lying on his back... underneath me... His face was screwed up in agony... "Christian..." I reached my left hand up to grab hold to where I'd obviously been hit on my right shoulder but as my eyes glanced around his body, I saw the blood on his chest. "Christian...? No, no, no, no, no, no, no..."

"Ro... Rose..." he gasped. "Fuck..."

I heard yelling all around me as my brain caught up with what I was seeing and hearing... I scrambled off his chest and onto the ground beside his body. "Christian?_... NO... no Christian... Christian!" _I didn't know what to do, I was frantic. I pushed my hands against his chest trying to stop the bleeding, eliciting a deep moan of pain, but what scared me the most was watching his eyes roll back in his head and his lids start to fall. "Don't you _fuckin'_ close your eyes, Christian! _CHRISTIAN!"_

He was so pale; his blood was seeping through my fingers, next thing I knew... Dimitri was in front of me ripping Christian's shirt apart.

"Love, move your hands." I looked up into his eyes unable to think, my mind felt like I'd just been given a shot of morphine or something. Everything seemed to go in slow motion, yet not... all at the same time.

"_CHRISTIAN_... _NO!" _I heard yelled beside us, I was aware that Dimitri was rolling Christian towards me as I looked to my right and saw Lissa running towards us, Mikhail was only a step behind her. That's when I saw Nat on the ground with Detective Morris kneeling on his back.

"Rose... _Rose_..." I turned back to Dimitri almost robotically when he called my name, too much had happened; my brain couldn't process any more. "Babe, the bullet went straight through... that's a good thing, okay?"

I couldn't speak as my eyes numbly fell to Christian's now completely red chest.

"Let me _go!..._" I heard off to my side as I stared at all the blood in front of me.

"Rose, I need you to keep the pressure on the wound. Sweetheart..." I felt fingers under my chin and I let him pull my face up so that he could look into my eyes. "...just hold on a little longer love, okay. Press here." Again my eyes travelled down to where he was placing my hands, I heard him telling me to push down and I did. I could feel bones moving under my hands; bones that shouldn't be moving. Once again Dimitri moved Christian and pushed something under his back; I could see it was a shirt. I looked up and was met with a half naked Dimitri... The soft moan below me made me look down; even unconscious Christian was still feeling pain...

"Oh God..." I whimpered. Movement on my right once again caught my attention and I turned my head to see that Mikhail now stood above Nat with his gun drawn while holding a struggling, crying Lissa in his other arm. Men I didn't know suddenly walked around from the rear of the house; hands raised to the backs of their heads followed by Morris and Ivanson.

"Rose, I need you to keep the pressure on the wound, can you do that?" I nodded not realising that I was pulling away from Christian. My brain still seemed disconnected from my mouth, my heart however was going full steam ahead... "Babe, look at me. Help is on its way, can you hear them?" Now that he pulled my attention to it, I could hear sirens getting closer.

"Dimitri... please." Lissa cried from where Mikhail still held her. I saw him give a quick nod of his head and seconds later, she was kneeling beside him with tears flowing down her cheeks. As I stared into her heartbroken face as she pleaded with him to stay with her, that she loved him; rage filled my chest. This rage I remembered well, _this _rage had a purpose. My eyes went down to Christian's pallid, sweaty face and when I looked up, who was coming around from the rear of the house but the man whose fault all this was... Viktor Dashkov.

Before I was even conscious of moving from Christian's side, my fist was connecting with Viktor's face... One... two... three hits reached their destination as he stumbled backwards. I felt the pain in my still screwed up hands but it paled in comparison to the red rage that fuelled my attack. Unfortunately, I didn't get much more than that in before I felt strong arms wrap around my waist. "You _prick! _I'm gonna kill you..." I screamed; I let out a few good kicks as I was pulled away, I'm pretty sure at least one connected where I wanted it to.

"Rose!" Dimitri yelled in my ear as I continued to fight against him. "...stop, listen to my voice. Calm down, love."

"It's all his fault, Dimitri... it's all his fault..." I raged.

"I know sweetie; he'll be dealt with don't worry. Concentrate on me; my voice."

Every word he spoke calmed me, as it always did. As he turned me away from the object of my anger, I was surprised at the number of people lying on the grass; their arms either behind their heads or in cuffs. It seemed only minutes later that the front yard of Viktor's cabin was full of flashing lights and activity. Police started loading people into the backs of their vans; paramedics attended those who tried to get mouthy with the detectives only to wish they hadn't. Other detective's cars also helped fill the street as their occupants milled about doing what they did best. I stood locked in a worried embrace with my best friend as Christian was prepped for transport to the nearest hospital; he'd been the most seriously hurt.

On one level I was aware of the pain coursing through my body; stitches that had been in my hand from Jesse's attack had been ripped out and would need to be redone as well as the gash in my shoulder that I'd found out was actually two holes. Apparently Nat pulled the trigger the same time as Christian tried to pull out of my grip, only to pull me in front of him... The bullet went through my shoulder muscle, deflecting it upwards through the top of Christian's chest, had I not been shot first, the bullet would have gone straight through his heart.

"I want to go with him." Lissa cried to the detectives as the medics pushed him in the ambulance. "Please...?"

"We'll be right behind you." Detective Morris said before turning to me. "You'll need to have your injuries looked at too Rose."

"Yeah. What's going to happen to them?" I said with a nod in the direction of cars that held the Dashkov men separately.

"They'll be taken in for questioning. I'll have to ask Lissa a few questions at the hospital too."

"Have you called her parents?" Dimitri asked beside me.

"No, not yet."

Dimitri offered to take care of that and organise for them to meet up at the hospital. It was a quiet for some time on the drive back, the events played over and over in my mind. I couldn't believe what had happened to my life since leaving high school... My life had quickly become a train wreck of mammoth proportions; the only bright light was the man who was currently sitting next to me.

"How's your shoulder Love?" Dimitri asked as we neared the hospital.

"Bleeding..." I said after looking down and seeing the bandage that the medics put on, nearly completely red.

"Before anything else, I want that seen to, understand." I could see by his face that he wasn't going to take no for an answer, so I just nodded and looked back out of my window. I grimaced as we walked into the ER, the smell was something that I'd come to dislike immensely over the years; I'd been here _way _too much growing up. While not exactly the definition of a tomboy, I was never really a girly girl either. I was as much at home climbing a tree as I was in a shoe store; Liss made sure of that... Morris saw us come in and had us buzzed through where I was immediately taken into a curtained off area to have my injuries looked at.

"What happened around the back of the house?" I asked Dimitri as he sat down in the chair beside my cot.

"I think it was..." He didn't get anymore out because the curtain opened up to reveal the doctor I'd seen after Jesse's initial attack.

"Okay then Miss..." The doctor's eyes went wide as she quickly looked up from my chart. "Rose...!"

"Hi Doc..."

"Dimitri?" she said surprised. "What...? Are you alright? Does your mother know you're here?"

"Hi Dr Olendski, I'm fine; we've not long been here, Rose on the other hand..."

"Ah yes... bullet wound?" She said as she made her way to my injured arm. "This wasn't from...?"

"Oh, no..." I said realising she thought it was from Jesse. "Not this time." Dimitri quickly brought her up to date over the happenings of the last couple of weeks as she went to work on my busted up hand and shoulder. She wanted an X-ray on both just to make sure that nothing was broken but that meant staying for another few hours; I tried to object but when Dimitri threatened calling for his mother to sort me out... I relented. That's not to say that he didn't call for her anyway...

"Oh Sweetie..." she said as she held my face in her hands. "You have had to deal with so much in such a short time... Are you sure you're really okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine... Are you able to find anything out about Christian? How he's doing?"

"I'll see what I can find out for you. Your friend is out in the waiting area with her parents, she's been asking about you and she looks like she's about to lose it."

"Can you send her in?"

"Sure, I'll be right back." With a quick glance to her son and a kiss to my forehead, she left my cubicle. It seemed like less than a minute later when the curtain was reefed open suddenly to reveal a very red eyed Lissa.

"Oh Rose... I'm so, so sorry. Are you alright?" She cried. I held out my arms and she collapsed against me in a slobbering mess.

"I'm fine Liss, have you heard anything about Chris?"

"No, they won't tell me anything."

"What happened, what did they make you do?"

"Oh Rose... You were right all along; I should have listened to you." I nodded silently as I brushed her platinum blonde hair behind her ears. "After we saw you both at the mall... Nat wanted to talk – about us; him and me... I don't know where to start..."

"How 'bout from the mall..." I suggested...

"Okay..."

_Flashback..._

"_How did it go?" Nat asked me as I met up with him._

"_As well as can be expected I suppose."_

"_We need to talk about this Liss; I need to explain a few things."_

"_I know we do." Nat nodded his head as he held out his hand for me to take; as much as I wanted to see that as a friendly gesture, I didn't want him to think too far ahead so I just smiled and started to walk to the doors that led outside. _

"_We're we going?" I asked him as we drove away from the mall._

"_Nowhere in particular, just driving around. Is there somewhere you'd like to go?"_

"_No, not really, just somewhere quiet." Fifteen minutes later found us sitting at a picnic bench on the other side of the lake to where Aunt Tasha's house stood. Looking at it from this side was... odd._

"_I'm sorry all of this has caused you so much anguish Liss, I've never wanted that."_

"_I know Natoli; it is what it is... I just don't know what to say to you."_

"_You can say anything to me, you always could." He looked so much like the young boy we grew up with then as he looked out over the water._

"_I love Christian. When I think of my future, I think of him. What happened last week was... wrong, it should never have happened. I like you Nat, I always have even as a little girl, but even then I always knew you liked Rose _that _way and not me... you still do."_

_He knowingly smiled as he looked up at me. "She always had me in knots. I'd get so flustered around her; tongue tied... you name it, but she never saw me as anything other than annoying. When my father made us leave the States, Rose was the first person I thought about, the one I knew I'd miss the most. I fought with dad to let me stay in a boarding school here so I could be closer to you guys, in the end it was something Natalie said that made me go."_

"_What was that?"_

"_That the old saying that 'Absence makes the heart grow stronger' and if I came back older and more 'worldly', Rose might pay attention to me." He took a deep breath and shook his head slowly... "Unfortunately, events made a possibly happy return – impossible." _

_I knew he was talking about coming home just after Jesse attacked her._

"_I thought that if I just treaded carefully around her and showed her a side to me that she didn't know was there, she'd... But that wasn't meant to happen..." He bent forward and put his elbows to his knees; dropping his head into the palms of his hands. _

"_She also had a boyfriend before that... She had strong feelings for Mason; not as strong as she has for Dimitri but..."_

"_I know that now. It didn't stop me thinking of what could have been though."_

"_Why did your dad bring you back now though?"_

_He was silent for a few minutes as his eyes never left the water in front of us and I didn't think he was actually going to tell me. As I stood up from where we sat, he turned to look at me with sad eyes and pulled me back to the seat._

"_I got into a lot of trouble, with the law... in Paris. Dad offered me a way out. I could either 'face the music', his words not mine..." he said using air quotes with his fingers, "... or he could make it all go away... for a price."_

"_What was the price?" I could see by his face it wasn't going to be good._

"_How much do you know about the line of work my father deals in?"_

"_Not a lot."_

"_My father's business deals in... shall we say, supply and demand. Whatever the demand, he'll supply! It used to cover a large arrangement of things but over the last few years, he's mainly dealt with weapons." He turned to look at me when he said the last word._

"_He's a weapons dealer?"_

"_In a nutshell... Not black market stuff, but still... He's been trying to land a large contract for the US military for what he calls '_smart weapons_'. Weapons that also have a biological component." He said not taking his eyes of mine._

"_Biological weapons? What in the hell for and where do you all fit in this?"_

"_I don't really know, he only tells me the basics. As far as me... well, that's where my deal comes in. My father has a lot of contacts from over the years, but to get this deal off the ground, he needed a lot of backing, financial backing. He also needed your father."_

_My father! Dragon Medical... everything was starting to make more sense but there was still something that didn't add up. _

"_Dad called your father when we were still lived in Europe to see if he wanted to become partners in this deal; it's worth billions. Because of your dad's line of work and his friendship with my dad, he was the best choice. Your father's company would work on the biological side of things while dad secured the weapons side. He needed an 'in' with a weapons manufacturer."_

"_Morgoi Industries..." I guessed._

_"Yeah, he anonymously made arrangements for me to acquire the internship so that I could 'whisper' in the ears of the right people so that he could get a foot in the door so to speak."_

_"You mentioned 'backing'?"_

_"Yeah, to get this deal off the ground, he had to acquire a lot of things before he could even take the deal to the military – he needed to buy the weapons, have a working biological component and then they'd look at it. So... he needed money."_

_"I still don't understand what he wanted from you, other than working at Morgoi, but I can see from your expression that that isn't all he wanted from you."_

_"No... it wasn't. As I said, he needed money, and lots of it." He turned his body so that he was completely facing me and then took my hands in his before he continued. "He told me that he had three options as far as the financial side of things were concerned. One was Lammergeyer Imports..."_

_"Mr Mazur's company?"_

_"Yeah... the other was some rich woman friend that he's known for years and the other was..."_

_"Was where...?"_

_"You."_

_"Me?" I said tentatively. "I don't have that sort of money, why would he think I did?"_

_"That was the other reason for me coming home. He wanted me to... pursue you." He said no more as I processed what he was saying. "When we came home and things were so... up in the air with Rose, I tried to stay in the background. I've always liked you as a friend Liss and I've never wanted to hurt you in any way... but seeing Rose like that and the woman she'd grown into, I was..."_

_I pulled my hands out of his grip and stood up. I walked down towards the lake with my arms crossed over my chest, thinking... I knew he had followed me down and was now standing behind me. "So your father wanted you to become involved with me so that... what... he could get his hands on my family's money?"_

_"More or less..." He said ashamedly behind me. "I tried to make him see that you were with Christian and that I had no chance of doing what he wanted me to do. I almost had him convinced too... He then went to visit the 'woman _friend' _but that didn't work out so..."_

_"So it was back to me." I turned around to face him and saw the troubled look on his face. "So why didn't you make more of an effort to 'woo' me?"_

_"It's not that I don't find you very attractive Liss, I do, believe me. And it has nothing to do with Rose either. When dad first came to me and offered a way out of the shit I'd got myself into... I could honestly see a possibility of a future with you, a _real _future. When we came home and I saw you for the first time, I actually looked forward to learning what you'd been up to since we'd been away, but then seeing Rose so... broken, it stirred up a lot of – feelings that I thought I'd put to rest. I tried to make him see that it wouldn't work out the way he wanted it to but he..."_

_"What?"_

_"He made sure that I knew failure wasn't an option. I either made sure he got what he wanted or... my problems would no longer be 'taken care of'... That meant prison Liss, prison in a French jail, for a long time. I know what I consented to do was wrong but it wasn't like I didn't have feelings for you. It may not have been love, but I figured that you being you, it wouldn't be long before what I did feel, would turn into love."_

_"You mean to tell me that your father gave you the option of either jail in a foreign country or try to get into a relationship with me so that he could get my family's money?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"God... Rose said he was an asshole, I just never knew how much." I couldn't help but grin at the snort of amusement that came from Nat._

_"Rose was always more clued on than people believed she was." he smiled. "When we... kissed, the other night, I thought maybe... there was a chance that we could..."_

_"Be together...?"_

_"Yeah. Not because of what my father wanted but..." He took a deep breath and walked closer to where I was standing. "When we kissed, I felt more than I expected. It was like... seeing something that I never knew I wanted until it was right in front of me. That's why I've pushed since it happened. I wanted to know if it was the same for you, if you could see this going anywhere and _not _because of what my father wanted."_

_I looked into his warm brown eyes that he got from his mother and saw the truth in them; he really had felt something he wasn't expecting to feel. Suddenly I felt sorry for the predicament that he now found himself in. _

_"I want to ask you something, it's purely for interest's sake..."_

_"Sure, ask away."_

_"I know you like Rose, you always have. Why not try to build something with her? Your father obviously knows her father and the money behind him, why not go after her? Your feelings would be real."_

_"My father wanted me to be with you. Personally I think it had more to do with the fact that you're close with your parents and Rose isn't." I had to think for a minute what he meant by that._

_"...That if _I_ was with you, my father would be more inclined to hand over money... being 'in the family' and all that."_

_"Exactly. He knows that Rose's family has the money but he also knows she's not close to her parents. He wants this contract way too much to risk not being able to get the money he needed."_

_"Why didn't he just wait and try to get the money from somewhere else?" I asked._

_"Well, there's a time limit."_

_"When does he need all the money?"_

_"Now." I was shocked to say the least._

_"But... even if you and I... How did he think he was going to get my family's money so fast?"_

_"He... wanted us to be..." He looked down and shrugged his shoulders... grimacing as if the knowledge was physically painful to him._

_"Wanted us to be... what Natoli?"_

_"Married... he wanted us to be married." He whispered before turning away from me and walked back towards where the car was parked. _Married... he wanted me married to Nat?

_"Natoli wait!" I called out before running up behind him. "Nat, you can't just tell me what you have and then just walk away."_

_"What else can I do Liss; I know what you must think of me now. What I've done is horrible, unforgivable... I should have just..."_

_"What...? Told your father to take a jump off the nearest cliff and gone to jail? I don't think there'd be too many people who wouldn't have taken his deal Nat; I'm pretty sure that if I were in your position... I would have done exactly what you did. Jail or try to get someone you are friends with to marry you... I don't blame you for taking the deal."_

_He put his hand on my face and smiled sadly. "You're too good for the likes of me." He took a deep breath and let it out in defeat. "Want to know something? Dad actually told me that when he finally got backing from Rose's dad, he asked Abe if he had any plans on bringing her into the family business."_

_"What did he say?"_

_"He said yes but my father said he could see that he didn't have high hopes of it actually happening any time soon, if ever. And knowing Rose and the woman she is now... I can't see it happening at all."_

_"No, I don't think so either. She's closer to her dad than her mother, that's for sure, but after what happened with Jesse and their failure to be the parents she needed, I doubt she'll have much to do with them from now on."_

_"Yeah, I think dad saw that too, hence why he threatened to have me 'pay my dues' so to speak."_

_"I can't believe he did that."_

_"My father is a master of many things; making empty threats is not one of them..."_

_"So what now? He's going to expect you to come through with what he wants, isn't he?"_

_"Yes... I don't want to do what he wants Lissa, especially when we arrived and saw you and Christian together... I really don't know what to do."_

_"Can we talk to your dad, try and work out something that doesn't involve us getting married?"_

_"I don't know if that's possible Liss, he's pretty determined to get his way."_

_"Will you let me try?" I asked. He stared at me for quite some time; his features troubled as he weighed his options. _

_"It's not that... urgh... Liss, you only know one side to my father, he plays a good part in public. I just don't know what he'll do if you speak to him about this."_

_"You'll be there; I trust you'll keep me safe." I smiled at him to try and ease his discomfort, but it didn't work at all and that made me think that maybe it wasn't a good idea to confront Viktor._

=x=

"_So, he told you everything I see." I swallowed deeply at the look in Uncle Viktor's eyes, it was seriously creeping me out. When he turned his eyes away from me and looked to his son – well, that's when I really shit myself. I swear they went red with fury and hatred. I looked over to Nat to see his forehead crease as he lowered his head; there was no mistaking the look on his face... he was scared._

"_Well I'm not sure if I know _everything _but I know enough I suppose. But Uncle Viktor, surely you must know that if I suddenly get involved with Natoli, heavily enough to get married to him, everyone will know that something is going on. I've been with Christian for so long and it's no secret that we love each other, no-one would believe that I would leave him to marry Nat."_

"_That's where you're wrong young lady. This has been in the plan for a long time; do you really think I would leave it all up to chance?"_

"_What do you mean?" I asked confused._

"_Your family has been made aware of a secret relationship that has been going on between you two for quite some time Lissa."_

"_What secret relationship?"_

"_The one I told them about, months ago. Your father was surprised at first but after I showed him your emails to Natoli, he soon believed me."_

"_What...? What are you talking about? I haven't sent Natoli any..."_

"_I'm a very powerful man Lissa, with all sorts of 'talented' acquaintances. Oh, by the way, your email account isn't very secure." I sat opened mouthed in shock as he walked over to the mini-bar in the corner of his office. My mind scrambled in the knowledge that he'd sent forged emails from my account to Nat's in order to fake a relationship... It made me shudder to think of what else he'd done. I looked up when Nat's hand covered mine in my lap, he tried to smile at me but his face showed nothing but regret. _

"_I'm sorry." He mouthed to me. _

"_Apparently, your mother is more than excited that you are with my son. They don't know about the engagement though."_

"_Engagement... what engagement?" He was totally off his rocker! It was as if he totally believed everything he was saying, was as it truly was. NOW I was scared..._

"_Why... you're engagement... to my son." With that he tossed something over to Nat. It was a small white paper bag, I couldn't see anything written on it but I had an idea what was in it. Nat opened it up and looked inside before looking back up to his father. Viktor gave a nod of his head as he sipped on his drink and I turned back to see Nat pull out a small, black velvet box. He opened it and stared inside while his jaw clenched over and over... _

"_This isn't right dad..." he mumbled._

"_Of course it is, you can't have an engagement without a ring, and _that _is exactly the sort of ring that would be befitting to someone engaged to you. Don't keep her in suspense... show her."_

_Nat looked up to me before licking his dry lips and moved over to sit beside me on the leather sofa. He turned the opened box to face me and I gasped at what was inside... If I had been presented this by the man I really loved, I would have been more than excited, I would have been ecstatic. _

"_That's a four carat diamond Lissa." Viktor said from where he still stood at the bar. "Set in 24K white gold... it's a beautiful ring, no?" I couldn't say anything, I just stared... was he really this delusional?_

"_I can't... I just can't..."_

"_You can and you will."_

"_Dad..."_

"_SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!" Viktor yelled at the top of his voice. Tears instantly formed in my eyes at the sheer shock of seeing a man that I'd always felt nothing but safe in his presence to some raving psychopath... "You've done _enough_ damage today thank you very much... Sit the fuck down and don't say another word or so help me God, I'll cut your fucking tongue out of you head."_

_Holy shit... _

_I looked to Nat and saw every last drop of blood leave his face... he was paler than any person could possibly be and not be unconscious... or dead. In that instance, I knew... I knew I was in a situation that I wasn't getting out of. I reached over and put my hand on Nat's, as he'd done to me... He was as much a pawn in his father's sick and twisted game as I was. _

"_Now..." Viktor said as he walked over to his desk. "... _This _is how it's going to be, tomorrow, we will be going to my cabin where there will be a small gathering of some of my closest friends and business associates. There, you will fulfil your obligation to me Natoli... do you understand?"_

"_Yes..." he said resigned._

"_Good... Lissa, I'm sorry that this all had to happen the way it did. I've always loved you as a daughter and had often held hopes that you two would unite our families once you'd both grown up. Unfortunately, situations dictate that I help speed things up and give you two a push in the right direction."_

"_You may be able to force this onto us, but you can't make me steal from my father. I won't do it."_

"_Oh... but of course you will my dear, because if you don't... Well, being the sole heir to your family's vast wealth would make it so that you didn't _have _to steal from them... because it would all be yours. Now wouldn't it..."_

_It took me a second to understand his meaning... 'sole heir'... 'heir' meaning he'd kill my parents... 'sole' meant he'd kill Andre too..._

"_I was so saddened to hear of Rose's troubles lately too... but then again, a girl not being properly supervised by her parents is easy prey to those who wish her harm..."_

"_Leave Rose alone father, she has nothing to do with this..." Nat yelled as he shot up out of the sofa._

"_I don't know what you mean _son..._ Do we have an accord my dear?" Viktor said turning back to me._

"_Yes..." I said almost silently as tears streamed undeterred down my cheeks. My stomach rolled as the gravity of what could happen if I tried to resist. "Where's a bathroom...?" I asked quickly putting my hand over my mouth. Viktor pointed to one of the doors on the far wall of his office and I shot off the sofa, running to it before emptying the contents of my stomach in the toilet. I jumped when someone pulled my hair away from my face..._

"_Don't Nat... please..."_

"_I'm so sorry Lissa... I never... he's gone mad, I've never seen him this bad. I would never have brought you here if I knew this would have happened. Please believe me."_

"_Would he really... hurt my family? Rose?" I said softly through my sobs._

"_Yes... I'm ashamed to say, yes... He's been obsessed with this deal for months now, it's worth billions and he wants it all..."_

_I closed my eyes, willing myself to not vomit again. I had no option... I had to marry Nat; I had to break the heart of the man I loved... I had to... for my family, for Rose and I had to make sure everyone believed me... Oh God...!_

=x=

End of Flashback...

I sat there stunned to my core as I looked into my best friends eyes. I knew she wouldn't have said one false word of what she'd just told me, but I couldn't believe that any of it was true... I knew Viktor was not what he portrayed but never in a million years would I have ever thought he'd be capable of _anything _this bad.

I pulled my eyes away from Lissa to where Dimitri sat beside me only to see an expression of pure rage boiling behind an almost serene mask. "Dimitri?" I whispered.

He looked up at me, his eyes softening when they met mine. "You've told this to the detectives?" He asked her.

"Yes. My father is... somewhere between disbelief, shock and rage at the moment. He knew that Viktor was procuring funding for the deal but wasn't privy to where it was coming from." She said before turning to me. "He says he didn't know about your father's involvement in it all."

"But why did Nat... do what he did?"

Her face crumpled before dropping into her hands so I got off the cot and walked over to her. I couldn't really understand what she was saying as she sobbed into my chest, but I knew that she needed to get this out... After a few minutes, she was able to pull herself somewhat together and she pulled out of our hug.

"He was so scared Rose... When Dimitri came into the back yard, he'd already said 'I do'... it was my turn next. When we knew that things were going south, Nat tried to get me into the house, away from danger. He kept whispering that he had the means to get me out of the country, as well as my family... and you. That he'd hide us so that we would all be safe. When Dimitri called me over to him, I had a moment of hesitation... I knew that if I left Nat, he'd have to face his father's wrath alone but I knew that going to Dimitri would mean an escape... so I took it. Nat was so... petrified of what was going to happen now that his father's plans had been destroyed, I can only guess as to what was going through his mind."

Just then, the curtain was pulled back and Olena made her way into the cubicle.

"I've just got word that Christian is out of surgery and is now in recovery." She said. The news made Lissa's tears start up again and I held her as I looked up to Olena.

"So everything went well then?" I asked to be sure.

"As far as I know, yes. He was very lucky; the bullet nicked the edge of the collarbone causing it to break but other than that, it went through without doing any real damage. I heard the detectives say that the bullet hit you first, changing its path when it went into Christian."

"Yeah... it's not like I meant for it to happen though."

She smiled before taking my face in her hands like she did before. "I'm just glad that you weren't hurt more than you were, you've had way too much pain as it is."

"Do you know when I'll be able to leave?"

"I think Nina, sorry... Dr Olendski wants you to get an X-rays first – just to be sure. All going well, I think you'll be good to go within a couple of hours." Then she looked over to her son. "Will you be staying with Rose tonight?"

"Yes, I think that's the best for now."

I couldn't help the blush that flamed up from my chest into my face. I know we're both adults but there was something seriously embarrassing about talking or implying about spending the night with your new lover... in front of his mother!

"Okay then. Well come see me again soon sweetie, okay." She said to me. I smiled and nodded before she enveloped me with her embrace. I closed my eyes and sighed at the feeling of what can only be described as 'home'... This was a feeling I'd never got from my own mother and it still took me by surprise when I felt it with Olena but then it just made me even more comforted to think that maybe I was destined to find this family... to complete me in every way. She gave me a quick kiss to my cheek before saying goodbye to Lissa and then made her way outside of the curtains.

"You've got such a wonderful mom, Dimitri."

"Yeah, I know."

Two hours later, I'd had my X-rays where it confirmed that I had no broken bones, so I was finally discharged. We also got word that Christian was now out of recovery and was being transferred to a private room where we could go and see him. When Dimitri, Lissa and I had made our way into the waiting room, I was shocked when Mr D walked straight up to us and wrapped his arms around Dimitri, thanking him for saving his daughter. Mrs D was next, though her words were delivered in a slightly more incoherent fashion. He took their gratitude with little ceremony, saying that it was the least he could do. I also had to ask if it was alright for him to come back to the house and stay for the night, which they readily agreed to.

"Aren't you coming?" Liss asked when she saw that I wasn't walking with them towards where Christian's room was.

"No... I think I just need to... you know. Tell him I'll see him tomorrow and that I'm thinking of him."

"I will. I never said thank you Rose... If it weren't for you... I shudder to think where I'd be right now if you hadn't done all that you did to find me... and if it weren't for you... Christian would be..." her voice broke off, catching in her throat at the thought of what could have happened to her boyfriend.

"Shh... Don't think about that. What's done is done and Christian is still here with you, okay. Just go give him a kiss and tell him you love him."

"I will..." she smiled and then turned to Dimitri. "I'll never forget what you did for me today Dimitri, you're a very special man and I'm proud to call you my friend."

"You too Lissa. Go see your guy and tell him I'll see him tomorrow too."

With that, Liss and her parents walked away from us, I only hoped that Christian would listen to what she had to tell him and would forgive her for what she'd done.

"Come on Love; let's get you home so I can clean you up." I smiled at the glint in his eyes... Even after everything that had happened today, the mischief I saw in his eyes was enough to light the spark of desperate need I now had for the man in front of me.

"Are you offering to give me a sponge bath?"

"Something like that." He smirked as he delivered a wink and then wrapped a muscular arm around my shoulders, leading me out to his car. It was dark by the time we left the hospital and it didn't take long for my eyes to close on the trip home... Hopefully tomorrow would be a much better day...

* * *

**Hi Everyone, First of all, thank you all so very much for all of your well wishes for my surgery on Tuesday... I'm a little nervous, but hopefully this will be my last surgery for the foreseeable future! :-) For those who don't already know, I'm getting my thyroid out... so all I can say is that it's damn lucky I have an infatuation with scarves! LOL! **

**Anyway... I hope this chapter has answered a few questions for you all and I know that some of you didn't know how to take Nat. He really is a good guy, just in a bad situation he couldn't get himself out of. **

**Now... Next chapter? Do you want to hear from Rose or Dimitri? I can do it from either... :D I'm not saying what it will be about, but it will work in either POV! Let me know...**

**Thanks for reading my little ramble... Till next time, Sandy.**

**P.S. I've uploaded more photos to my photo bucket... Some of who I think would be good actors for Janine, Abe & Viktor (in this story). Also one of the ring that Viktor bought for the forced marriage...**


	31. Chapter 24 Ah ha

**Sorry for the delay guys... Larger A/N at the end...**

* * *

**Chapter 24 Ah-ha.**

**DPOV**

I knew she wouldn't stay in the car...

Seeing Rose on the ground, bleeding no less... for the first time in my life, I was struck dumb as to what to do next... She was hurt, scared... and I wanted nothing but to be by her side and protect her but danger was way too close for comfort. For a split second, I had to think of where to go first – the predator or the prey.

I chose Rose...

I could see the fear and confusion in her eyes as she looked at me, but the fear wasn't for what was going on around her, I could see that it was for her friend bleeding between us. I could also see that things were fast becoming too much for her. All of this was just too close on the heels of the attack at her parent's house, I just hoped that the feelings that this would no doubt be bringing up in her would stay under control long enough for me to be able to help her through...

While keeping one ear trained on Nat behind us, I tried to assess Christian's condition. I could see her starting to fall apart; I had to keep her mind turning over before it fell into nothingness... I tried to stop her falling apart by getting her to concentrate on helping me stem the blood flow of Christian's wound, but I wasn't sure it was working; I'd only keep her with me for a few seconds before she'd drift off again.

"...just hold on a little longer love, okay. Press here..." I was more than pleased when I heard the sirens in the background; the sooner they were able to take over, the sooner I could look after Rose. But then things happened faster than I was ready for... Lissa was frantic in her need to get to her boyfriend but that set Rose off... all the pain and anguish and helplessness that she'd been feeling for so long, finally spilled over to someone that she felt she could unload on or should I say, unleash on... Viktor.

Rose moved so fast, her already mangled fist ploughed into his face at least three times before I was able to pull her away. Her rage seeped from her body almost palpably, this was the beginning of the crash I knew was coming, I just didn't know when it would arrive and consume her.

Christian and Lissa were taken to the hospital not long after I was able to calm Rose down and on the way to the hospital, I kept my eyes on her the whole way. She was quiet, but I could tell by her eyes that she hadn't retreated into herself. I tried to pull her into conversation by checking on her arm but her emotionless answer spoke volumes... she needed time to 'deal'...

After threats of sicking my mother onto her, Rose finally let someone see to her injury at the hospital. I called her anyway; she would have skinned me alive if I hadn't. My heart warmed at the closeness between the two most important women in my life.

Once patched up, Rose and I sat and listened to Lissa, I wasn't ready for the revelations that came out of that conversation though... As she sat telling us what had happened since we'd seen them at the mall, my anger built. As much as it became apparent that Nat's part in all this mess was just as forced as Lissa's, I couldn't stop myself from holding it against him for not coming to me for help; and somehow I would have. I couldn't fathom how he thought he could handle this on his own.

After finally getting the go ahead that all was well with Rose, all I could think about was getting her home... safe in my arms.

=x=

The ride home was quiet, no doubt both of us thinking about what had just happened. I glanced to the right of me when I noticed how quiet she'd become and saw that she had fallen asleep. I was pleased to see that she was able to shut down for a while, she had to be exhausted. I couldn't help but take her in. I knew she was alright but still, the memory of hearing that shot go off and then seeing her on the ground bleeding will stay with me for quite some time. In a lot of ways, it was worse than seeing her after Jesse's attack. _This _time, was too much like... Ivana. I knew that I wouldn't get much sleep tonight; I knew that I would be too apprehensive in closing my eyes in fear of the dreams that would surely assault me – like last time.

I couldn't lose her; I wouldn't survive.

I drove slowly down her street and stopped as gently as I could in front of the house. I watched her silently until the nothingness around us slowly brought her out of her sleep. My heart clenched as I saw so many emotions flow through her expression so I reached out and took her hand in mine; my thumb softly stroking the skin on the back of her hand. We sat in my jeep for a few minutes more, just staring at each other, neither one of us moved or spoke or even made the move to get out... we just sat.

"I don't know... how much... more I can take..." she said breaking the silence, her voice all but a squeak by the end. I quickly dropped her hand and reached out for her; pulling her across the centre console and into my lap. Instantly she curled herself into a ball, ducking her head under my chin and started to shake. I didn't know if this would be the collapse I'd been expecting or not so I held on tight to let her know I would help hold her together.

Through the heat of her face against my chest and the soft sniffles she tried to mask, I knew she was crying, it was what needed to happen. I didn't want to do this in a car though, so I pulled the keys out of the ignition and moved to take this into the house. Mrs Dragomir had given me her house keys before we'd left the hospital so at least I didn't have to worry about trying to find Rose's. I held her in my arms as her cries softly persisted and awkwardly made our way into the house.

I didn't hesitate once I'd kicked the front door closed behind me. I walked straight up the stairs to where I knew her room was located. Once inside, I walked over to her bed; the only light in the room was the last slivers of the late afternoon sun peeking through the gaps of the closed curtains covering her window.

I never noticed how soft her bed was before, but trying to manoeuvre myself into the middle with a crying Rose in my arms was not easy. Finally settling myself against the headboard, her hands gripped my shirt as I tightened my arms around her.

"How much more Dimitri?" She whispered in amongst her sniffles a little while later. "How much more crap am I going to have to deal with?"

"I can't answer that Rose..." I said with a heavy heart. "...but you know that no matter what happens from now on, you'll never have to go through it alone, I'll be here every step of the way, I'll never let you fall."

"All I wanted to do was to let loose... and have a great summer before going off to college and starting the next chapter of my life. That's not too much to ask for is it?"

"No, not at all Love."

She lifted her head from where it rested against my chest and under my chin; my heart breaking when I saw the raw pain in her eyes.

"He could have died..." she whispered. I knew who she was talking about...

"But he didn't, and that was because of you. You saved him Rose." I said as I took her face into my hands and wiped at the tears that continued to fall. "It was only because of your actions that he's still alive – before _and_ after he was shot. You are _so _strong Rose, never forget that. I know you can't see just how much right now, but you are. Everything that has been thrown at you may have knocked you down a bit, but each time you've just got back up and dusted yourself off and come back stronger than before. Every day I'm amazed by you and so damned proud."

It was too dark in the room to really see what was going on in her eyes, but I could feel her body tense little by little as I spoke to her. I was about to ask what was wrong but the words that came from her mouth shocked me a little, even if I half expected them.

"I want him to pay for what he did..." She said with as much hate as I'd ever heard from her. "He needs to _hurt._They all need to."

"Rose, you need to calm down Love, he'll be punished for what he's done." As the seconds ticked on, I could feel that her body was still tense in my hands. I quickly reached over to the bedside table to where I knew a lamp stood and turned it on; I needed to look into her eyes. When soft light filled the room I was shocked to see the level of fury and rage that had taken up residence in her normally compassionate face. I'd seen this look before and I knew I had to bring her down. I shifted the top half of her body slightly so that she was facing me more; I needed to keep her attention for the conversation that I knew we were about to have.

"They need to suffer for what they did." She spat. "Viktor took her love for her family and friends and used it as a weapon to hurt and manipulate her, he terrorised and exploited his own flesh and blood... for money. He's not human... _no_ human being could do that... He needs to suffer..." Her rant had started soft and almost disbelieving but by the end, her voice was low, cold and deadly...

I quickly took her shoulders in my hands, trying to bring her attention to me. "Rose, look at me..." I could feel her whole body shaking in rage beneath my grip so I reached for her chin and _made_ her look at me. "Rose! Snap out of it! I know you're angry, I am too..."

Her eyes snapped into focus on my eyes at my words and I watched as they creased slightly at the corners. "_Stop it_..." she said in an angry gust, pulling her face out of my hand. "You're doing it _again_... You're always so calm, so composed, no matter what the situation. You said you'd always be there and you _weren't_..."

_What the hell? _

"Rose..."

"You said you'd always protect me, hurt _any_one who tried to hurt me." She yelled as she struggled against me. "But that didn't happen, did it Dimitri? What happened huh? Where were you when I needed you, huh?" I could see the pain that was etched into her beautiful face. Everything that had happened to her over the last couple of months had finally boiled over and could no longer be contained. I knew that she probably didn't mean for her words to carry so much bite, but bite they did. I deserved them though; I knew that what she said was nothing but the truth. "I _trusted_ you... I trusted _only _you and when I needed you the most, you left..."

"I..."

"No. I'm _sick_ of being so weak, I'm going to make sure that Viktor gets what's coming to him even if I have to go in there and take care of him myself. He has to _pay_ for the pain he's caused... He's..." Her eyes shifted away from me, settling on the wall behind me in contemplation.

"Rose, stop. Let it go Love, this anger, it isn't you."

"_Yes_, it is, I've been so weak for so long... not anymore."

"You've never been weak – you've been hurt, but never weak. Look at me Love..." I said as I turned her face back to me. "Look into my eyes, Rose. I'll say it again; you are without a doubt, the strongest person I know. What you've had to deal with over the last couple of months would cripple most people, but not you... You've come through this stronger than ever and I have so much respect for you, I can't even put it into words." I could see the anger start to subside at my words and I realised that she probably hadn't heard me when I'd said these same words to her earlier on, so I kept going. "Every time I look at you, I'm in awe of how far you've grown, your capacity to move forward under the worst of circumstances. You've _never _been weak a day in your life; you never will be and I'll be here every day to remind you, for as long as you want me here."

I watched and felt the last of her anger slip away into nothingness; her body trembled in a completely different emotion. "Rose..." I whispered as I lifted my hand to her face and brushed my thumb across her cheekbone. "Are you alright?"

"I... I don't know. I want him to feel the pain he's caused so bad, I want him know _exactly _what he's done, how _deeply _he has damaged everyone in this family. I wanted to hunt him down just then, Dimitri... I've never wanted to kill someone as much as I did just now." She whispered.

"I know." There was so much I wanted to say to her. Her painful words reverberated in my mind, I'd been waiting for the day to arrive when I would have to address my abandonment of her, to tell her that it would _never _happen again, but I knew there were other things I had to do first. "Your desire for revenge is normal Rose. It doesn't make you a bad person, it makes you normal. Your fears, your emotions, your desires – they're real and they're justified. You're strong and I have no doubt that when these feelings come up again, you'll overcome them just as you have now."

"That's only because _you're_ here with me. Every time this has happened, you've been the one to bring me back. What's going to happen the next time I...?"

"I'll be here." I interrupted, I knew what she was going to say and I had to let her know that I wasn't going anywhere. "You're so strong Rose, that's one of the many reasons I love you, why I'll always love you."

I had to show her... I brought my other hand up to her face and held her gently as I bent forward and brushed my lips against hers.

"I love you..." I whispered as I kissed her bruised cheek.

"I adore you..." I whispered as I kissed her closed eyes.

"I'm in awe of you..." I whispered as I kissed the end of her nose.

"I respect you..." I kissed softly down her jaw and continued down to where I slowly lapped at the pulse point in her neck.

I pulled back to look deep into her eyes, I needed her to believe my next words... "I need you..." I hoped that she could see the truth of what I was saying, I needed her as much as I needed air – obviously she did...

"Oh God Dimitri... I need you too." She closed the gap between us, wrapping her arms around the back of my neck as our mouths locked together. My arms wrapped around her body as she lifted one leg so that she now straddling my lap. I moaned and shivered as she pushed her body closer against mine, grounding herself into me.

"Oh shit, Rose..." I hissed at the feeling. So much had happened since she'd received the call from Lissa, but not once had the memories of being surrounded by her, buried deep inside of her, been far from front and centre of my mind.

"Make me forget Dimitri, please... just for a while." She pleaded against my mouth moments before she pressed her tongue inside; exploring, tasting. The feeling made my mind go blank, just like it had when we we'd come together at the cabin.

"Ah, fuck Rose." Her hands fumbled blindly as she tackled the buttons of my shirt.

"Oh, I intend to." She said breathlessly, making me snicker. My hands found their way under her shirt and the now familiar hum of electricity shot through my fingers as they came into contact with the silky skin of her back. When she let out a small gasp and flinched away slightly, my hand stilled...

_Injuries... _"Rose... we should..." I said starting to pull away.

"No, don't stop. I'm fine... Please don't stop." Her hands gripped into the hair at the back of my neck as she chewed on her bottom lip.

I didn't want to do anything to cause her pain, physical or otherwise, but I also knew what it was like to need the physical comfort of another person when the pain got too much to handle on your own. Sometimes you just needed to lose yourself, to forget...

I pulled her lip from her teeth gently with my thumb before I pushed my lips against hers but it wasn't enough, I needed to taste more of her. Slowly, my tongue came out and slid along her now free bottom lip. Immediately she opened to me allowing me to push inside her mouth, probing and exploring in a silent promise of what was to come... elsewhere. I had to hold myself back from devouring her right then and there when I felt her tongue meet mine. Slowly, sensually... we tasted each other. The hot, hard, yet soft silkiness of her mouth had my insides moaning in anticipation of the pleasure it knew was coming.

Stroking...

Caressing...

Tasting...

Enticing...

As much as her essence had me completely entranced, I was still very much aware when her hand moved downward; I pulled away from her kiss, pressing my forehead against hers and grabbed her wandering hand. "We have all the time in the world Love; we don't need to rush..." I said grinning.

Her eyes never strayed from mine as she moved her hand back up over the hard muscles of my stomach to my now fully exposed chest. "You take my breath away..." she whispered.

I can't say that her words did nothing to inflate my ego a little, because they did, they also helped to inflate something _other _than my ego... just a little more than it already was. I was now painfully hard, desperately needing her and throbbing in time with the ever increasing beat of my heart. Slowly we comforted each other, the need to come together always there. Every kiss, every caress was better than the last until we couldn't wait anymore.

"Oohh, Dimitri..." she breathed out as she lowered herself over me. I gripped her hips, steadying her for a second so that I didn't embarrass myself by finishing before we began. I kept my eyes on hers as I brought myself under control. She leant down over me, hands caressing my chest as her lips blazed flaming trails across my skin. My hands slid upwards over her soft skin, wrapping around her body and holding her as close to me as possible.

As our lips came together once again as one of my hands wound into her silky mane and pulled it back to expose the soft skin of her neck, a low growl reverberated from my chest as my lips attached. I loved the taste of her skin, just a hint of saltiness mixed in with the sweetness that was all Rose. My eyes opened as I felt her push against my chest and slowly sit upright. With our hands now clenched together, I watched spellbound as she slowly rocked her hips back and forth against mine. I loved this woman with every fibre of my being, no-one would ever come close to her – she was my everything.

A soft smile pulled at the corner of my mouth as she pulled my hands up over her flat, tight stomach, finally cupping her amazing breasts. As we moved together, my fingers played with the pebbled peaks; my smile widening as I watched and felt her edging closer and closer to ecstasy. There was no better sight than seeing her come, no better feeling either.

I nearly lost the plot when my eyes lowered to where we were joined. No matter how many times I'd seen it, it is and always would be the most erotic vision I could ever wish to lay eyes on. Seeing my cock glistening, slick with our mixed arousal was a sight to behold and one I was determined to see more often. I looked up into her lust filled eyes as I felt her start to tighten around me. She was close...

=x=

**RPOV**

The coil in my belly tightened as I rocked my body over him. There was still a big part of me that couldn't comprehend why this magnificent man chose me... He was a God amongst men – and here he was, mine for the taking. A soft moan escaped as I felt his hands move around behind me; his fingers gripping tightly into the flesh of my ass as he rocked my body over him. His hips would thrust up as he buried himself deeper and deeper, but I wanted, no, _needed_ more...

Mini me was kitted out in her sequined cowboy boots and ten gallon hat, riding her mechanical Dimitri and seemed to be having more fun than me right now... The moment she pulled out the lasso was the moment I locked that crazy bitch up in a padded room! But then I was happy to see her doing something _other_ than cower in a dark corner.

I shifted my weight to one side as I pulled against his right shoulder; luckily he knew what I wanted and he lifted himself up and over me as I laid onto my back. I was quickly coming to the conclusion that I rather liked the feeling of having Dimitri's massive body cover mine. I loved feeling his weight press my body into the mattress below me; loved watching his eyes darken in lust and desire as he climbed higher and higher into ecstasy, and loved the feeling of being completely and utterly at his mercy while knowing that he would never hurt me.

My eyes rolled back as I pressed my head into the pillow, my body arching up to meet each of his slow, deep thrusts. "Argh..." I moaned. A hand travelled down my right leg and lifted it up his sides, then the left... My breathing caught in my throat as he pushed deeper inside. Then, lowering his body completely on top of me, his arms wrapped around my somewhat contorted body and grabbed onto my shoulders from behind, using them as leverage to push deeper still. _Fuuuuucccckkkk!_

"_Rose_... Oh, God... I... I... oh..." I was aware of him speaking, his panting words fanned against the hot, sweaty skin of my neck but they didn't really register in my brain as my body finally swan dived head first over the cliff of ecstasy; wave after wave, the tingling heat of my orgasm spread through my entire being...

"ARGH! Oh... Holy shit..." My legs clamped around him, my heels somehow digging into his back in an effort to have him closer, to physically merge his body into mine... more than he already was.

My fingers dug into the flesh of his back as the sexiest growl I'd ever heard ripped from his body. The sound triggering my second orgasm just as the first had started to subside, the intensity of it even more that the first. Surely no-one could burn like this and survive...

White, flashing, starry lights flashed behind my closed eyelids as a cry somewhere between a scream and a laugh sprang from my mouth. Two hard and fast thrusts had him calling out, "_Bozhe Moy!" _His body tensed as I felt him pulse deep inside of me, my body gripped and tightened around his; greedily taking everything he gave me.

Slowly, our bodies started to relax, though our hearts still beat at a frantic pace. He let loose the grip on my shoulders, allowing me to gently slide my legs back down his side while still holding him captive.

"Holy... hell..." he panted as he kissed up my jaw. "That was... oh God, that was..." I could hear the smile in his words and I was pretty sure that his face would mirror the 'maxed out' bliss that was currently taking up residence on mine... "I love you Rose..." he whispered before kissing me deeply once more. "...so, so much."

"I love you too." I smiled as he lifted up slightly to look into my eyes. The peace and utter happiness I saw in his eyes made my heart swell to the point of overflowing. The emotions of the last couple of months coupled with what I felt for him at this very moment were finally too much for me to contain. Stinging at the backs of my eyes pre-empted the almost instantaneous filling of tears, tears that quickly spilt and ran down the sides of my temples and into my ears.

"Love? What's wrong? I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No... No, not at all. I'm just..." I bit my top lip as the bottom started to quiver.

"Shh..." Dimitri whispered. He quickly rolled to my side, pulling me tightly into his embrace. "I'm here my beauty; I'll always be here, for as long as you'll have me."

Hot tears continued to fall silently against his naked chest as he tucked my head under his chin, one of his big, strong hands stroked from the top of my head down to the middle of my back, over and over again. I was so emotionally exhausted, over the last twenty four hours I'd run the gamut of emotions.

Fear – from the moment I got Lissa's frightening phone call.

Anxiety – because I didn't know if I'd get to her in time.

Exasperation – when everyone around me seemed to be dragging their feet.

Sheer terror when Christian was shot right in front of me.

Helpless, paralysed, empty... I felt it all. It was only Dimitri's words as we worked to keep Christian with us at the scene that kept me together at the time. Then once at the hospital, listening to Lissa recount her experiences, more emotions assaulted me; disgust, fury, rage, vengeance...

So my body's release was all it took for the bricks of my carefully erected brick wall around my emotions to fall away and allow it to all spill out. The flood gates were open and they didn't want to close up again. One by one I went through the emotions, letting them fall away into nothing while in the security of Dimitri's arms.

Security...

Something clicked – inside... like a light switch. I felt something within me change. The tears stopped almost instantly and I lifted my head up and looked at Dimitri in the soft light that filled the room before I slipped my leg over his body, his eyes watching me as I straddled myself over him.

"You okay?" He asked as he ran his hands up my arms.

I couldn't reply as I basked in this new feeling, a feeling that I hadn't felt in what felt like a lifetime – freedom. I felt... free. A small smile pulled at my mouth in reply before I looked away from his eyes and watched my hands travel up his body. Leaning forward, I traced a line of soft kisses from his sternum over to his heart, where I rested my head. The strong, deep and steady beat of his heart was the only thing I needed to hear, for the rest of my life.

"Perfect." I whispered to myself. I closed my eyes and looked inside myself. Mini me stood leaning against an imaginary wall in my subconscious; legs crossed at the ankles, arms across her chest, nodding slowly with a content and knowing smile. We were both now strong, free and loved... All because of the man whose arms I was now cradled in. I was blissfully unaware as I slowly succumbed to slumber... with a smile on my lips.

=x=

Bright flickering light pulled me out of my sleep and I smiled as my fingers closed against the hard muscles that they rested on. The heady, intoxicating scent that filled my nostrils was one that I'd secretly named 'A La Dimitri'... Oh, how I wish I could bottle his smell...

"Good morning Love."

I squinted and blinked as my eyes became accustomed to the bright sunlight that now filled my room, but it was his warm eyes that I saw first. "Mmm, any morning that I wake up and your face is the first thing I see, is most definitely a good morning."

"Oh, cheesy..."

I couldn't help but giggle... But then I remembered yesterday. I wondered how Christian had got on last night and if everyone was home yet. Of course 'eagle eye Dimitri' saw my expression and knew what was going on inside my head.

"I heard them come home just after midnight; no-one has stirred this morning though." He told me. "Do you want to let me in on what was going on in your beautiful head last night before you fell asleep?"

It only took me a second to understand what he meant. "Oh, um... it's hard to explain really. I just had so many things going on in my head... thoughts, emotions, memories... I couldn't contain them any longer and it all just spilled out of my in the form of tears. Then all of a sudden, it all stopped, like the well had run dry and all that was left was the realisation of how safe I felt, it was almost prophetic. My... 'ah-ha' moment I suppose you could say. I hadn't felt that – free, in a long time, then I just couldn't help but smile."

Now it was his turn to smile.

"You know... no-one's awake yet..."

Now it was _my _turn to smile...

"I like how you think Mr Belikov."

"I hope that's not the only thing you like about me..."

_Ohhh..._

* * *

**A/N: ** ** A little longish... ** Hi again, first let me apologise for the HUGE wait for this chapter... I've had a few side effects from my last surgery that have left me a little... flat... where it comes to writing. First was unexepted skin adhersion to the inside of my neck where the thyroid was removed. I'm doing therapy to try to stretch the skin but it may mean surgery to fix it... GGRRRR!

Next, the medication has me growing horns... you know, the pointy red ones, oh and don't forget the pointy red tail and pitchfork to match... Hence to say, I'm not a very pleasent person to be around lately! :-) So humour has been a bit lacking in my thoughts lately. They've (Dr's) been fidling with my medication and I must say that I'm feeling a little more like myself so hopefully that means that I'll be in a better frame of mind to write...

Now... This particular chapter is probably the sixth version... 1,2,3 & 4 just wouldn't come out the right way, nothing I wrote was good. Then version no.5 came out brilliantly one night... all until I tried to save it... Yup! You guessed it... Thousands of words... GONE! My wonderful beta heard ALL about it... I could have cried, and in my current state of mind, losing thousands of words was NOT good! Anyhoo... version no 6 is here, maybe not quite as good as version no5, and not as many words but the gist of what I wanted to happen is there...

Lastly... remember what I said at the start about Rose being OOC at first... well, this chapter see's the turnabout of her character. In upcoming chapters we should see more of the Rose we all know and love... Should be fun, huh! Wonder how Dimitri will like the new Rose?

Sorry for the spiel, but lots to say... Thanks again for your patience, it won't be so long next time. :D  
Sandy


	32. Chapter 25 Heal, Healing, Healed

**Hi Everyone, **

**Yay! A new chapter! Well, first of all... I got my copy of Bloodlines yesterday and I HAVEN'T read it yet because I've been busy finishing off this chapter and the next chapter of Achilles... Aren't I nice... It's sitting in front of me as I write this, taunting me... Well, Sydney is with her 'read me' eyes... hehehe **

**Anyway, this chapter is unbeta'd, I don't know where my beta's gone... :( Hopefully there isn't too many mistakes. Let me know if there is. There's another note at the bottom.**

* * *

**Chapter 25 Heal, Healing, Healed**

If I have anything to say about it, I plan on waking up like this _every _morning from now on! I don't think there are enough words on this planet to convey the emotions that Dimitri brings out in me. One that stands out the most since last night's 'Ah-ha' moment is, _strength. _I feel strong, confident... just like I did before all this shit happened to me.

We'd been laying here in my bed in a tangle of limbs for a couple of hours now maybe. We'd heard movement a while ago, but neither one of us wanted to move, so we haven't. I was quite content wrapped around Dimitri's hard, naked body. My right hand was currently drawing slow circuits around his chest and every now and again, I'd brush a finger over his nipple. I couldn't help but smile when I'd feel him draw in a sharp breath each time I'd do it. Mini Me was quickly shedding her fluffy, see through negligee as I felt him harden against my leg.

His right hand was currently tracing up and down my back and every now and again, his fingers would circle the contours of my butt cheeks before squeezing. He was turning me on again!

"Do you think we should go down soon?" Dimitri asked me.

"Probably." I replied to his question. Mini Me gave me a knowing look and wiggled her eyebrows, we obviously took his words a little different than what he meant. Images of me _going down _on him flashed through my mind... Mini Me agreed! And as hard as it was to stop myself from letting my erotic thoughts be known, I just couldn't find it in myself to move. I suppose there was a part in me that just wanted to hide away for a little longer. That didn't mean that I didn't want to go and see Liss, to ask how Christian was, 'cause I did... I just wanted to forget, just for a little while longer. And what better way to forget something than to fill my senses with the man currently half under me.

_I should fix that! _

I moved the leg that was currently over Dimitri's further across his body and pushed myself over, straddling his body. We laid there silently as we looked into each other's eyes. His hands ran up my sides as mine cupped his face and I could feel his body start to react to my new position. His hips moved under me, and I sighed as I felt his hardness push against my core. It didn't take much to close the distance between our lips. I would _never _tire of kissing him.

Dimitri moved as if to sit up and instinctually, my body moved with him. He was ready, I was ready and we each swallowed the moans of pleasure as we came together again. Now joined, Dimitri rolled us over as one of his strong hands slid down my leg and pulled it up his side.

"Oh..." I couldn't stop my eyes rolling back in my head as he pushed deep into me over and over again.

"Open your eyes." He said in a soft yet commanding voice. "I love you Rose, with all my heart." He kissed up my neck and the soft skin behind my ear.

That's all it took! I shattered beneath him.

He moved slowly, in and out, rolling his hips against mine. Rubbing against me, pushing, kissing, licking... "Faster..." I breathed.

His hands slipped around me and gripped my butt cheeks before he did as I asked. Dimitri was a big, tall man, everything about him is _big, _so it didn't take too many plunges before he had me screaming his name again... this time I took him with me. We hadn't lasted long this time, it was almost like our bodies needed to proclaim their love to each other as much as our words do each time we say them. It was probably the first time I fully grasped the meaning of 'making love'...

"Wow..." I whispered against his lips.

"Every time Love, every time." Dimitri rolled to the side, bringing me with him. I knew he did this because he thought he was too heavy for me, but I loved feeling his weight over me. "I love waking up with you like this."

"I bet you do." I said smiling. "I must admit, I quite like it myself and think it should happen on a very regular basis."

"Mmm, me too. I'd like that very much actually." He leant forward and kissed me slowly before slipping out of me. I missed him instantly. "But, if we don't go downstairs soon, someone is going to come up here looking for us."

I knew he was right so with another couple of quick kisses we moved off the bed and made our way into my ensuite where we quickly... well, sort of quickly, showered.

=x=

Coming downstairs this morning was different somehow. I couldn't really put my finger on why though, I just knew it was. We could hear voices coming from the kitchen and as we walked, I felt _new... _Walking inside, we both stopped as we saw that everyone was here.

"Good morning Rose." Mrs D greeted. "Dimitri, how are you both this morning?"

"Good thanks." I answered. My eyes went directly to Liss, who looked as though she'd spent the night in tears. I felt Dimitri let my hand go before it came to the small of my back, pushing me gently towards my sister. With a quick smile of thanks, I made my way over to her. She sniffed back silent tears as I held her but soon pulled away with a smile.

"How is he?" I asked.

"He's good. He was pretty drugged up when we left last night, so he wasn't in any pain. But the doctors said that he shouldn't have any problems."

"Thank God." I took the seat beside her and looked around the room.

"No, thank you Rose. If you hadn't..." Liss said as a single tear fell from her eye.

"Shh... No, don't think like that, okay. He's alright, he's going to be fine, don't think of anything else, cause it will do you no good."

"What you did was amazing Rose," Mr D said. "...you should be proud of not only what you did yesterday, but how far you've come."

In that moment, I had the strongest pull to wrap my arms around the man that I'd always looked up to, that I'd come to love as my second father... so I did. I stood up and walked around the table, standing beside him. When I opened my arms to him, he only hesitated for a second or two before he stood up and tentatively wrapped his arms around me. The little voice inside my head that told me to get away was quickly stomped into oblivion by a rather smug looking Mini Me... She smiled and dusted her hands off like she'd just come from some great battle... but the symbolism of what her actions meant were not lost on me.

"Thank you." I whispered.

"I couldn't be more proud of you Rose, for everything you've accomplished." I pulled back and saw the pride he held in his eyes and it made my breath catch. I could hear Mrs D sniffle behind me but it was Andre that I saw over Mr D's shoulder. He held the same look on his face as his father and I realised how much I'd missed him. Not only had Mr & Mrs D become more my parents than my real ones, but Andre had become my brother and I loved him.

I smiled before leaving his embrace and then turned to Andre. His eyes flittered around the room as I walked towards him, unsure of what to do. "Thank you for being patient with me Andre." I could tell he was wary as I opened my arms to him; I couldn't blame him for not wanting me to freak out again. It felt good to be able to do this again and while the feeling of wanting to run was still there a bit, I didn't have that 'skin crawling' reaction anymore.

"So," I said after pulling away from Andre, "... what's happening today?"

"We're meeting Detectives Morris and Ivanson at the hospital in two hours." Mrs D informed me. "They wanted me to let you know that they'd like to see you again too." I had a feeling that they would.

The morning flowed quietly after that, breakfast was quick and easy and we were all soon on our way. There wouldn't be enough room for everyone in Mr D's car so Dimitri and I went in his. I was surprised to see Adrian join us before we left, but I thought maybe he wanted to be there for Andre and Liss.

We had just under an hour before we had to meet the detectives, so we went up to the ICU where Christian was taken after his surgery. Being in here brought back images of the morning I woke up after the first attack, a chill ran down my spine.

"Are you alright?" Dimitri asked as he pulled me in closer to his side.

"Yeah... bad memories." He nodded but I could see he didn't completely understand. Thankfully he didn't ask me to elaborate. We followed Liss to a door that was obviously Christian's room and I took a deep breath before entering. My eyes instantly went to the body that was _not _on the bed... Tasha. I was a little angry at my heart and the way it clenched when I took in her appearance. She looked terrible. Her eyes were red rimmed and bloodshot, her hair was as messy as her crumpled clothes. She looked like she hadn't slept in a week.

Her eyes took in everyone as we entered but stopped instantly on me. She stood up quietly so as not to wake Christian and walked slowly towards me. "Rose... I can't..." She took a deep breath and swallowed heavily as a tear rolled down her cheek. "Thank you... for what you did. I wouldn't have survived if I'd lost Christian too. Thank you."

I was struck dumb when she wrapped her arms tightly around me and cried on my shoulder. I gradually regained control of my brain and my hands came up to pat her back gently. I didn't know what to say or do and I looked over her shoulder to see that everyone looked almost as uncomfortable as I did.

"You don't have to thank me Tasha." I said after she pulled back away from me.

"Yes, I do. I haven't treated you very nice Rose and for that I'm truly sorry." I didn't know what she was talking about really. Apart from the 'Diner incident' where she'd draped herself over Dimitri, she hadn't been all that bad really, so I didn't know what she meant. But at the moment, I didn't really care to wonder.

Christian was awake.

"Hey hot stuff." I said smiling.

"At least you acknowledge my awesomeness..." he said with a slight smirk.

"Yeah well, someone has to feed your delusions..." He gave me a wink, acknowledging our well rehearsed banter. I couldn't help but notice the slight wince when a laugh tried to escape him. "You're looking better. It's good to see."

"Yeah well, only the good die young Rose." Then his smile faulted as he realised what he'd just said. "Oh shit Rose... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean..."

"No Christian, don't. I know what you meant and Mase wouldn't want us walking on eggshells all the time because of what happened." I could see in his eyes that he was now belting himself up, so I took a deep breath and walked over to where he laid. "Give me a hug and we'll call it even."

His eyes widened before they flicked over to where I knew Liss was standing with her parents. I couldn't blame him for his hesitation; it had been so long since any male other than Dimitri could come near me. "Are you sure?"

"Yes." I said confidently. He searched my eyes for a few seconds before opening his good arm out. In the time I'd known him, I've maybe hugged him once or twice before, but over the last few weeks I'd come to realise who my real family were and Christian was definitely part of my family. When we pulled back, I was confused at the look on his face.

"Welcome back..." he said softly with a genuine smile. I'm pretty sure that only I heard him.

The visit was good but it didn't take long before Christian's eyes started to droop. "Well, I could do with some coffee," Tasha said softly. "...how about we go down to the cafeteria for a bit and let Sleeping Beauty rest for a bit."

I had to stifle a giggle at Christian's pitiful 'death glare' attempt...

"I'll stay for a while." Liss said.

"I thought you would." I mumbled with a smile.

With a quick cuddle and a wave to Christian, I walked out of the room with my hand firmly grasped in Dimitri's. We weren't at the cafeteria long when the two detectives walked in, their eyes finding us immediately.

"Good morning everyone." Morris greeted. Adrian's aunt stood beside her partner silently while her eyes travelled around everyone at the table. "We have to ask a few more questions about yesterday, but before that... Rose, we've spoken to Miss Conta again and have her signed statement. We've also procured ten more statements from other people at your party that witnessed things pertaining to the three defendants. As you know, the arraignment against your three attackers is due to be heard next week."

_Next week... _Yes, I knew, but I'd tried to forget about it for as long as possible. I didn't know what to say so my head slowly nodded as my eyes stared unseeing at the grain in the table as she spoke. _Next week... _Next week I would see them again, _him _again.

"Rose... Rose?" I was pulled out of my musings by a hand on my forearm but the voice came from the other side of the table. "You don't have to appear at the hearing if you don't want to; it's just to go through the evidence."

"Yeah, I know."

"Okay.

We made a time that we'd go see the detectives and give statements before they said their goodbyes. I was so sick and tired of giving friggin' statements. I just wanted this shit to be done, and I knew it wasn't... So much more was still on the horizon.

"Rose!" I looked up and saw Mia and Eddie fast tracking it through the cafeteria... _Oh shit... _

"Mia..."

"What in the hell happened? Why didn't you tell me?" She said angrily.

"I'm sorry Mia; I didn't mean to leave you out of it all. Everything just happened so quickly, I wasn't thinking straight." I could tell she understood but she was still pissed. "Hi Eddie."

"Rose. Are you okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'll live. Aren't you guys supposed to be on your way to sunny California?"

"We'll get to that later, tell me what happened."

So I did... By the time I was finished, Mia was in tears and Eddie was stony faced. I could tell he was angry. He'd only known us for a couple of months but he was a great guy and a good friend.

"I can't believe it... Viktor? I just don't understand why he would go to such extremes."

"Money, pure and simple. He needed the deal to go through and he needed the money."

"I know, but... Lissa! He's known her all of her life, he's her father's best friend; how could he do that?"

"He's insane." I needed to change the conversation; I didn't want to think about all this crap anymore. "When do you guys leave?"

"Oh, we're not going."

"What... why?"

"There's too much going on, we can go another time."

"No Mia, I know how much you were looking forward to this, you should go. I'm not making you go, but don't feel bad; you'll be back soon. If I thought I could get her to go, I'd tell you to take Liss with you but I have a feeling she won't be anywhere but Christian's room for a while."

After finally convincing Mia that she didn't have to stay behind, we said our goodbyes. They were already packed when the detectives had come to her house and asked her about the false phone messages that had been sent from Lissa's phone... that was how she'd found out about the whole fiasco.

We were walking back up to Christian's room a little while later when we ran into Dr Markov.

"Rose, how are you? I ran into Olena as she was leaving yesterday and she told me what's been going on, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good Oksana. I'm sorry I had to cancel my Thursday session."

"Don't worry about it, I'll still see you on Monday though, right?"

"Yup, I'll be there. Do you mind if I bring Dimitri?" She looked up to the man who I had turned his head to look at me. It must have looked hilarious... I was looking at Oksana, who was looking at Dimitri, who was looking at me!

"Yeah, that's fine Rose, any particular reason?"

"Well, yeah there is actually but it okay if we talk about it then."

"Of course. You look great Rose, even with..." she trailed off smiling as she indicated to my bruised and battered body. But I knew what she meant; I could see it myself in the mirror this morning when I showered. Something had changed in me; I could see it and I could feel it.

"Thanks."

"Alright, I'll let you go. Bye Rose... Dimitri." And then she was gone.

=x=

The rest of the week went by rather quickly. We spent most of the weekend at the hospital with Lissa and Christian before they finally let him go home on Monday afternoon after Dimitri and I had seen Oksana. Dimitri had taken the week off work too and we worked on getting my fitness back up and more training. It helped me focus and that is exactly what I would need come Friday. I knew I didn't need to be at the arraignment, but I wanted to be. I needed to be.

We also spent every night together. I may have played on the fact that Mr & Mrs D thought it was because of some lingering anxiety... I wasn't about to tell them otherwise and have them tell Dimitri not to come back. Some nights we even spent at his mother's house. I seriously loved that woman.

Most nights we made love, some nights we did nothing but hold and kiss one another, our hearts connecting instead of our bodies and every day I fell more in love with him.

* * *

**A/N: Oh btw, I've made up a facebook account for my stories where we can chat and I can maybe post up some teasers, pics etc... If you like to come join me, do a search for Kessafan Fanfiction... I hope to see you there. Didn't everyone like the last Achilles chapter? The least reviews I got in one chapter had been like 35 or 38 or something, then last chapter was like 17... :(  
Anyhoo... Hope you liked this one, till next time, Sandy!**


	33. Chapter 26 Trials and Expectations DPOV

**Quick A/N: **Okay, first of all, I'd like to say a big thanks to SassyNoles who beta'd this chapter for me and Angela Masson who's been chatting to me the whole time I had to re-write the last part that I somehow, mysteriously LOST! You saved me from throwing things around in a very undignified hissyfit! So, thank you girls.  
Now another thank you to all my readers. I'm sorry I haven't answered any of you reviews. RL is SOOO friggin busy right now, I've hardly had time to scratch my... butt! :-) Just know that I do read each and every one and I love them! I will endeavour to get back into the swing of answering my reviews!

Anyway, lucky you's... an unexpected Dimitri chapter... Till next time, and don't forget to join up to my facebook page...

* * *

**Chapter 26 Trials and Expectations**

**DPOV**

"Good Morning Rose, Dimitri... How are you both?"

"Good thanks Oksana." Rose replied. I gave a nod and a smile in answer, after all, the docs question wasn't really directed to me.

"Have a seat you two." We'd walked into the big, open office hand in hand but as we walked over to the soft lounge chair to the side of the room, I let go of her hand and moved it to rest against the hollow of her back. "So, how have you been since we last talked Rose?"

"Hmm... where do I start?" She said as we sat down. "You know about the attack last Monday... Um..."

"Yeah, I do. How do you feel about that? Do you feel that you've had nightmares because of it or are they the same as you've always had?"

I turned to look at the woman beside me and watched her jaw clench as her eye took on a 'far away' look. I'd been there for a few of Rose's nightmares but didn't know if they stemmed from the first or second attack; or even from both.

"Well... I don't know really. They seem to start off like they always have and then morph into..." Rose fidgeted and scratched the side of her face as she tried to get her thoughts together. "They at least end better than they used to... Now I at least know I can fight back, and I always will."

"That's good. Has this knowledge and confidence in yourself helped in other aspects of your life?"

I wanted to smile and say yes... because I'd seen firsthand the slight changes in her. She was more confident, she was able to touch and hug other males without freaking out, and she was more determined with our training. I knew she'd had some sort of epiphany the other night and I must say that I was more than a little excited to finally be seeing the real Rose Hathaway and each day I saw a little bit more.

"Yeah, it has but it probably has more to do with what happened last Friday." Dr Markov didn't say anything; she just sat waiting for Rose to open up. "Do you know what happened?"

"No, not really, only what you looked like."

"Hmm... well, the full story would probably take longer to explain that we have time, so I'll try to give you the bullet points... I'll start off by saying that after you know the whole story... I'll probably need a further six months of therapy." Rose scoffed and smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. "Where to start..."

I watched her as she spoke and while she wasn't falling apart like she used to do when speaking of the attacks and Mason's death, she was definitely flustered. I squeezed her hand in a show of support and when she looked up, I was happy to see that her eyes weren't clouded in the fear that I'd grown accustomed to since meeting her.

"You know that I'm living with my best friend and her parents, the Dragomir's?" Rose started, Dr Markov simply nodded. "Well, a long time friend of Mr D's needed money for a '_business_ _deal'_" she said using her hands to accentuate her point, "... and being the type of person he is, didn't see anything wrong with going to _any and all _lengths to get his grubby hands on his friend's money. He kidnapped my friend and tried to force her to marry his son in an effort to get his hands on Lissa's family's money... I got a phone call when..." Rose looked up at me coyly and smiled, to which I smiled back, the memory of our short time away often replayed in my head. "... when Dimitri took me away for a couple of days. Through a process of elimination, we found where she'd been taken and stopped the forced marriage before it got too far. Christian was shot; I got in the way... Then you saw us at the hospital."

Dr Markov sat there nodding her head slowly as she wrote some things down in the large pad on her lap before taking a deep breath and looking up at me. Her eyes drifted down to our joined hands before going back to Rose. "I see you two are a very close." Rose nodded as she squeezed my hand again and I wondered if she would actually tell the doc just how close we'd become.

"We love each other very much." Rose said simply.

"That we do." I said smiling.

"Well, I'm glad that you've had someone there to help you through all of this Rose. Your physical cuts and bruises will heal with time; your emotional ones will heal with help from those who love you the most and I'm here for the mental ones. Is there anything about the most recent events that you'd like to talk about today?"

"Ah no, not really, um... I wanted to actually talk about something that happened afterwards... when I went home." I continually watched her face, waiting for what she was going to say next because I knew exactly what had happened after we went home and I didn't think she would talk about that. As I watched her, I quickly went through that night. Then I remembered... I remembered when her whole demeanour changed, like she'd come to some decision. I was happy that I'd finally get to know what was actually going through her head at that time.

"Okay..." Dr Markov said. "I guessing it has something to do with you and Dimitri."

"Yeah..." I smiled a little watching her cheeks flush. "Well, after Dimitri brought me home, I had a little... meltdown, I suppose you could say. It was like I'd experienced so many emotions that my body couldn't contain them and they flooded out like..."

"Poison..." I mumbled.

"Yeah. It just kept coming; all I wanted was to exact revenge... For Lissa, for Mr D, for me... In a way, for Nat too... It was Dimitri who brought me back from the rage that boiled out of me, he held me, he talked me down, and he... comforted me. Afterwards, as he held me and his words rattled around in my head, the emotions left me and all that was left was a sense of... security... peace and freedom. It was a feeling I hadn't felt in so very long; it was almost like I'd..."

"Turned a corner." Dr Markov said with a smile. Her eyes held nothing but a serene _proudness_ for the beautiful woman at my side.

"Yes, exactly. The next morning we went downstairs and I had this irrepressible urge to hug Mr D." The look of achievement in her eyes was amazing and it was a look that wanted to see every day, the doc almost had the same look. "Then I hugged Andre, Lissa's brother. I've always thought of him as mine too, but it wasn't until that morning that I realised just how much I'd missed him. Then at the hospital, I hugged Christian too... I couldn't stop hugging everyone." She let out a small giggle as her cheeks flushed slightly.

"You know how momentous this is, don't you Rose?" My beauty nodded and looked up to the doc, listening to what else she had to say. "Your mind created a safe place after your initial attack, it instinctively knew how much it could take and being close to males was _way_ too much; well, most of them anyway... Your mind needed time to heal; to catch up and accept the feelings inside. It was something that had to happen when the time was right. I'm glad to see that the time has come; it can take some people years to achieve such a result. I'm not saying there won't be times when you'll feel like the memories are starting to take over again, but your mind has come to a point where it can deal with what happened."

"How are you dealing with the events of last week Dimitri?"

My head snapped up from where I'd been watching our hands. "I'm fine." I took a breath, ready to defend myself as I watched one eyebrow raise in question at my answer.

"I'm sure you are but I know how hard it must have been to see Rose hurt as well as everything else that had gone on."

"Yes, it was hard." Thankfully the look of '_don't go there' _was quickly received and she moved back to Rose. The demons of my past hurts had long been put to rest and I did _not _wish to dredge them back up again; it was hard enough the night I told Rose about them.

After our joint session with the good doctor and a promise from me that I would call her if I ever wished to talk, we made our way to Christian's room where a very excited Lissa and Tasha told us that he was going to be released that afternoon. Rose and I had them promise to call when they had a definite time and we'd come and get them. I was pleased to see Lissa and Christian holding hands even though I could see that there would be an in depth conversation happing in their very near future. The fact that he wasn't dismissing her bode well for them. I knew they loved each other but a lot had happened and they hadn't had a chance to talk about any of it.

That next week, Rose and I spent a lot of time training, well as much training as I'd let her do. She was quite determined to become strong both physically and mentally and she'd told me in one of our many night time discussions that she wanted to be at the arraignment on Friday. For her to feel like she was taking back control, she felt that she needed to confront her attackers at every opportunity. She knew she couldn't physically beat them to a pulp so she had to ensure the legal system did it for her.

I tailored a workout program for us to follow that wouldn't do more damage to her already battered body. A few times things got heated between us and I wasn't talking about fighting. The all new 'confident Rose' was the sexiest, most alluring vision I'd ever seen. It didn't take much to inflame my desire for her so to combat that, I made sure we trained _outdoors _as much as possible.

Friday came and went and Rose didn't crumble. She walked into the courtroom with her head held high and looked those bastards in the eye when they turned to see who'd just walked in. Jesse looked like shit and I couldn't hide my amusement. His nose was still quite swollen and the bruising from his busted cheek had made its way to the undersides of his eyes, they were all colors of the rainbow... black, blue, green, red and yellow. My girl certainly did a good job!

Items that looked like they could have been owned by Rose from the first attack were passed into evidence as well as the statements the detectives had procured from some of the kids at the party but what shocked us the most was when Aaron stood up and asked if he could take the stand to make a statement.

"Are you sure Mr Voda?" The judge asked. The other two defendants eyes widened in shock as they looked at their cohort, trying to get him to tell them what he had planned but Aaron's eyes stayed focused on the judge.

"Yes, Your Honour, I am."

"Your Honour, can I have a moment to confer with my client?"

"Of course, but make it quick councillor, I'm not running a bed and breakfast."

"Yes, Your Honour." We watched as Aaron and his lawyer bickered softly between themselves, Jesse and Ralf were doing their best to hear what was said but Aaron was adamant.

"Your Honour, I'd like it noted that I have advised my client that I feel it's in his best interests that I speak to him before he does this, but he wishes to continue."

"Noted. Mr Voda..." The judge indicated with a nod of her head to walk up to the witness stand. Rose shifted a little closer to me as the bailiff walked over to swear Aaron in.

"What do you think he's going to say?" She said quietly.

"Not sure Love, but by the looks of his and others faces, it's going to be good."

"Go ahead Mr Voda." The judge said. Aaron didn't say anything at first but I watched his brow crease up as his eyes fell onto Rose, then they went over to the other two before he took a deep breath.

"I knew that Jesse had planned to disrupt the party and I knew that he planned on _hooking up._"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Jesse screamed as he leapt out of his chair.

"THAT'S ENOUGH! Councillor, control your client." The judge yelled as she pummelled the gavel against her desk.

"He's lying! I'm not going to sit here while he spews fucking lies. Who put you up to this Aaron? You'll pay for this."

"Councillor!"

We sat with mouths open as we watched the scene play out in front of us. Rose's hand gripped mine tighter and tighter.

"It's true Your Honour. We all met at Jesse's that night and had a few beers in his bedroom before heading over to Rose's place. Before we left, Jesse walked over to his bedside table and opened the drawer. He reached in and tore off something from the underside of the tabletop."

My eyes had left the blabbing face of Aaron and I watched with keen interest the other two defendants, if looks could kill... Aaron Voda would be dead and buried.

"Jesse stood up with a grin on his face and said...'Now I'm ready to go.' And when I asked him what he meant, he showed me the tablets. I didn't know what they were; I thought he was going to take them once we got there so he could get high. So I asked... He told me that they were 'Roofie's'... that he needed to get laid and didn't want the hassle of a fight. He and Ralf pumped fists but I didn't want any part of it and tried to get out of going, but he practically dragged me out of the house."

"You're a fuckin' liar Voda..." Jesse growled. The judge turned her head to look at the defendants table, silently telling the lawyer to shut his client up. No matter what the lawyer said, Jesse and Ralf continued to demand that someone stop him from lying.

"Keep going Mr Voda."

"Well, Jesse and Ralf got in the front of Jesse's car and I was in the back. I didn't know what to do and I didn't know the phone number of anyone who might have been at the party but I did know the neighbour of Lissa's and considering she was one of the hosts of the party, I thought I'd text him."

"Does this neighbour have a name Mr Voda?"

"Ah yeah, Adrian Ivashkov, Ma'am. My older brother is friends with Adrian and so I texted him and said that I thought Jesse was gonna make trouble over at Rose's and I was gonna try and stop him but could use some help. The night went on and I thought he'd decided not to go ahead with anything, until he grabbed my arm and pulled me up the stairs. I didn't know... I hadn't seen him do anything. I didn't know where he was taking me or what he really planned to do..."

I felt Rose shudder beside me and I asked her if she wanted to go outside for a breather, but she was adamant to stay.

"When I walked into Rose's room and saw her lying there, I could tell she wasn't _just _asleep. I told the guys that I didn't want anything to do with it but he... he said if I didn't, he'd do it to my sister."

"I'M GONNA FUCKING _END_ YOU VODA, YOU HEAR ME!" Jesse screamed. His lawyer tried to hold him back as he yelled at him to calm down, but he was out of control. The judge continued to thump the gavel down only to have to call in security to take Jesse away. While that was being done, I watched the Sarcozy boy glare at Aaron with eyes of fire. He was just as mad as Jesse but he hadn't lost his cool like his partner in crime...

"So Mr Voda..." the judge said, "... are you stating to the court that you knew that Mr Zeklos and Mr Sarcozy had planned and tried to get help, but none came? That Mr Zeklos threatened the safety of your sister to coerce you into helping him?"

"Yes."

As Aaron's statement was wrapped up and taken into evidence, I held Rose tightly into my side. I felt her shoulders shake and kicked myself for not making her leave before things had become too much, so without saying a word, I gripped her tighter around her shoulders and stood us both up, walking us out of the room.

"Rose, are you alright?" I asked as the doors shut. I grabbed her wrists as her hands covered her face and pulled them away, what I saw... was _not _what I expected!

She was laughing.

"Rose?"

"Did you see their faces?" She said before her giggling turned into laughter. "Jesse looked like... his head was about to explode. And Ralf... Oh God! That was the funniest thing..."

I didn't know what to do. I didn't know if I should laugh with her or if she was having a meltdown and it was coming out as laughter instead of tears.

"So... I take it you're alright then?"

"No... I'm bloody fantastic. That couldn't have gone better if I'd written a bloody script. I wonder if they'll call Adrian to give evidence now."

"More than likely, they'll want to confirm that he got the text that Aaron said he sent." Just as the words left my mouth, the doors to the courtroom we'd just left, opened up and Detectives Morris and Ivanson walked out.

"Miss Hathaway, Mr Belikov. That was an interesting turn of events, wouldn't you say?" Morris commented.

"Extremely..." I said.

"Did you know anything about that?" Rose asked.

"No, but Mr Voda has just made our job, oh so much easier." Ivanson said.

"So what happens now?" I was happy to hear the strength in Rose's voice, I was afraid that this hearing would be a step back for her, but instead, it's just made her stronger.

"Now..." Morris said, "... We're off to talk to Mr Ivashkov."

Both Rose and I looked over to Ivanson but as normal, she showed no emotion on her face. All the way home, Rose talked non-stop about the things Aaron had said and she really did seem fine.

=x=

"So, how did it go?" Lissa said tentatively when we finally walked inside the Dragomir house.

"Oh, you are _never _going to believe this..." Rose and I then spent the rest of the afternoon going over, almost word for word, what went down at the hearing. Understandably, Mr & Mrs D were furious that Aaron had known what Jesse was going to do and still did nothing. The fact that Adrian hadn't replied to a text that may or may not have been sent was neither here nor there according to them. There were so many guys at the party who he could have gone to but didn't... I agreed wholeheartedly.

We were all waiting to see what Adrian had to say after he spoke to the detectives. They'd followed us home from the courthouse as they didn't want to waste any time in finding out the truth nor give anyone the chance to talk to him before they did. It was just on dinner time when we heard a knock at the front door. Mr D got up to answer it and we were all surprised to see Adrian walk back with him.

"Adrian... So what happened? Can you talk about it? Is it true? Did you get text from him?" Lissa was firing off questions like a machine gun but stopped when Adrian started chuckling.

"Yeah, I can talk about it Lissa, although I don't know what to say... I didn't get any text from Aaron; it wouldn't matter who sent me a text like that, if I got one saying that Jesse was planning on slipping a Roofie to someone at your party, I would have come over and told you..."

"I know..." said Rose, "... I found it weird that he'd said that in court, I couldn't believe that you wouldn't have said something earlier, if in fact he'd sent it to you."

I sat watching Adrian's face as everyone spoke while eating and discussing the hearing. I know that I'm a naturally suspicious person, but something wasn't sitting well with me. After we'd all finished eating, I managed to get Adrian by himself, I wanted to dig a little deeper.

"Why do you think he said what he did under oath if there was no way to back it up?" I asked.

"I have no idea; maybe he was trying to save his own skin." Adrian said as he fidgeted and looked everywhere but in my eyes.

"What did you do Adrian?"

His eyes flicked up to mine finally, they were neither confused nor guilty, what they were, was unapologetic!

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing, Dimitri."

"Adrian..."

"Dimitri... have you ever heard of the saying, 'What you don't know, won't hurt you.'? Well, don't ask anything else and then I won't have to lie to you. Just keep doing whatever it is that you're doing with Rose. I'm not stupid, I know that she's where she is today because of you. When we were younger, she was the annoying girl that wanted to play boy games, but she was always like a sister to me – then she grew up. I'm glad she has you, look after her."

"With my life." I said without hesitation. With a pat on my shoulder as he walked past me, I was left wondering what in the hell he'd done. My sense of right and wrong, needed to know but my sense of protection was stronger and ultimately, it won out. Whatever Adrian had done; it was none of my business, so from now until the actual trial, I would busy myself with making Rose stronger both physically and emotionally.

As I stood back and watched her laughing with the people she now considered her family, I knew that I would do just that... I would protect her with my life without a doubt.


	34. Chapter 27 Plotting and Planning

I don't profess to know the procedures that I will be writing about in the first half of this chapter, so in the spirit of Fiction, just smile and enjoy... If someone knows the origin of Adrian's family please let me know, I looked and looked and couldn't find it... **More A/N at the end**... Sandy xxx

* * *

**Chapter 27 Plotting and Planning**

**Adrian's POV**

Tuesday 29th June

The day after he finds Rose in the stream pool.

"Name?"

"Adrian Ivashkov."

"Who are you here to see?"

"Aaron Voda." I handed over the paperwork that I'd filled out to the guard that stood on the other side of the counter. He was huge and looked like he could take on three inmates by himself. I made a silent vow to never do anything to deserve having him as my keeper... well, at least not get _caught_ doing anything.

"Take a seat please Mr Ivashkov while Mr Voda is brought in."

I gave a quick nod before walking over to the line of plastic chairs that lined the far wall and waited to see the snivelling little dweeb. I'd thought of this a lot lately. Because of my friendship with said dweeb's brother, I also knew Zeklos too. He was without a doubt, the slimiest asswipe I'd ever come across, and that was saying something.

While I did have a momentary pang of guilt over what I was about to do to my friend Grant's brother, it wasn't enough to change my course of action. His friends were dangerous and needed to be put away before they could do more damage than they already had, but Aaron... he had plenty of chances to stop them from doing what they did and he didn't.

"Mr Ivashkov..." The voice of the guard to my right pulled me from my thoughts so I stood up and followed him further into the jail. I followed along quietly as I was led through a hallway and then finally into the visiting room. "You have five minutes."

"Thank you." I said. Aaron sat in front of me, stony faced and what could only be described as unrepentant. He didn't need to do or say anything to steel my resolve.

"What are you doing here?" Aaron asked abruptly.

"I've come to see you... of course."

"Why? Did my brother send you?"

I didn't answer him... he could read into this visit, whatever he wanted.

"Why didn't you try to stop them?"

"Why would I?" He said smugly. I really had to stop myself from launching over the table and smashing my fists into his face.

"Do you regret it?" His expression didn't change for a few seconds but then because I know him, I saw the slight change in his eyes, a change that said he was remembering the night in question. The slightest smirk pulled at his lips, a smirk that others may have missed before he focused back to me. Obviously I wasn't going to get an answer. "I know that you're under the impression that Jesse and Ralf are your friends, but you know that at the earliest opportunity, they're going to stick together and feed you to the lions, don't you?"

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't I? You lived with your mother till what age... fourteen? You guys have been friends for... three years? You are aware that Jesse and Ralf have been thick as thieves since they were like five years old hey. You're not stupid Aaron; surely you can see that when the chips fall, who's going to fall with them... It's not going to be either one of them."

I watched as Aaron fought a silent war within himself as he pondered what I'd just said. My plan relied on him believing me.

"They wouldn't abandon me."

_He's slipping..._

"Really, are you willing to bet the next ten, maybe fifteen years of your life on that?" I sat back in my chair as I watched his eyes narrow in thought; his cold, hard eyes never left mine, probably trying to catch any weakness in me... But he wouldn't find any, I'd thought a lot about this plan of mine.

What these guys had done to Rose had sparked a fire in me so rampant, I could hardly contain it. I'd grown up with her and Lissa; they were both like sisters to me, well, until Rose grew up. I remember the day with utmost clarity...

_**Flashback**_

"_Hey man... you're back early." Andre said when he opened the front door._

"_Yeah, I never realised just how boring my uncle's villa was until now..."_

"_Oh yeah, I could imagine..." he drawled. "All of those French girls fawning all over you all summer long... I could see how you could become bored..." Every second year I was sent off to my uncle's place in France while my parents went somewhere else in the world for a holiday... normally I was fine with it but this year sucked, big time. The villa was out of the way and there was only like two people my age within 10 miles... Boring!_

"_You gonna let me in or what?"_

_We both laughed as he stepped back and I walked into the Dragomir house. "You got the place to yourself? Where are the pests?"_

"_Outside at the pool. Lissa and Rose have a couple of friends over so I'm in here where it's peaceful."_

_We sat side by side for the next ten minutes playing the playstation when we heard laughter from behind us. I turned around to see who it was and had to do a double take... "Holy hell... who's that?" I asked quietly. Andre turned to see who I was talking about and stared at me like I'd grown a second head. "Who is it?"_

"_You're kidding right?" When he realised I had no idea who the girl was, he started laughing uncontrollably._

"_That's Rose you dick..." _

"_Rose? Little, tomboy Rose Hathaway, Rose?"_

"_The one and only."_

"_Holy shit! She's got boobs..."_

_**End Flashback!**_

"I'm not saying I believe they would abandon me, but if they did, there's nothing I could do about it, is there?" _Gotcha!_

"Oh, I don't know about that." I had to play it cool here, otherwise he would catch on. Aaron was many things but stupid wasn't one of them. I knew I didn't have much longer, so I had to get it all out... "You know as well as I do, that if they feel they have a chance to pin this whole thing onto you and save their own skins, they'll flip you so fast you won't even be aware of it until Bubba in cell block D's made you his bitch... Correct? I have a plan if you'd like to hear it."

"Why, why would you come here and try to help me?"

"Grant..." I wouldn't say anything more than that... I would hope it would be enough. I could tell he wanted to believe me; his jaw clenched and unclenched rapidly.

"Fine... spill." I gave a quick glance to my wrist to see that I only had maybe a minute left before I'd get called out, so I had to give him the bones of a 'plan'...

"Simple, turn on them before they have a chance to turn on you. Grant's my friend and I know this has been hard on your family so I'm here to give you an option. I'll be an alibi, if you will... I've had a long hard think as to what we could do to swing it and this is what I've come up with. You need to show that you didn't want any part in what Jesse had planned and you need to make it believable. You can say that when you realised what he'd planned you tried to get out of it but when you realised that he wouldn't let that happen, you texted me. I'll say that I didn't get your text until later that night and by then everything had already happened. I don't know if that will be enough to get you off as an unwilling participant, but it will at least separate you from them and their crimes..."

"Won't the cops check if I sent you a text?"

"We'll just say that they were deleted."

I knew that Aaron wasn't 'street stupid' but I was hoping that he wasn't smart enough to know that deleting texts weren't enough to stop the police. Just then the door opened and the guard walked in. "Time's up."

"Have a think about what I've said Aaron, your family misses you. Call me."

As I stood to leave, Aaron gave one, slow nod of his head. I could see by the look in his eye, my 'plan' was spinning around in his head. He would spend God knows how long turning it over and over working it out until it was just right. It wouldn't be long before I heard from him... I just knew it.

=x=

As it turned out, it was only three days later when the call from Aaron had come through, and he was _pissed! _Apparently, Jesse and Ralf had been released from custody; money talked when there was enough around. They'd played directly into my hands and had abandoned him... Just like I said they would...

For the next couple of minutes, I listened to Aaron rattle off '_his version'_ of what went down that night, not the real one of course, but I played along... I now had Aaron right where I wanted him, now I had to keep Jesse and Ralf in the noose too... They'd hurt a friend of mine in the most despicable way possible and I wouldn't let them get away with it, I had to pull this off for Rose and for everyone who loved her. Many different scenarios went through my mind; I just had to work on which one would ensure a good outcome.

"I just wish we had something more concrete than your word of the events that night." I said to Aaron.

"You do..."

"What do you mean?"

"Jesse has more of those tablets than just the ones he gave Rose. He has them stuck on the underside of the top of his bedside drawers."

_YES! Thank you for being so Goddamn stupid Jesse..._

"Is that the only place he stashed them?"

"As far as I know but knowing Jesse, there's probably more."

"Okay... We can't say anything until your hearing comes up, you can't show your hand yet. Jesse's out and if anything is said just yet, he'll have the chance to get rid of them."

=x=

It was only a few days after that that Jesse tried to finish what he started with Rose at the party. When I heard, I flew into a rage... my poor room beared the brunt of that rage the most and I had to stop myself from calling in a favour to end all three of the gutter-trash that had hurt my friend.

It would have been easy to do to; my uncle in France had his fingers in many 'ventures' around the world. If Rose and Lissa thought that Viktor was dangerous, they didn't know the meaning of the word until they'd met my uncle... He'd grown up in a bad neighbourhood back in the home country of Romania and survived and to survive in that part of the world meant you were one tough son of a bitch with contacts... I could use those contacts if I really wanted to...

But no, I wanted him to pay; to rot away in some prison somewhere and get a dose of his own medicine. He was a good looking guy, he'd be snapped up in no time at all... I could after all, use those contacts if the slimy bastard slipped the noose of justice...

I waited, somewhat impatiently for the hearing to arrive. I was anxious, but the day that the shit hit the fan and Lissa was nearly forced into marriage and Christian was shot, things changed for Rose; for the better! I smiled as I watched her wrap her arms around some other male than the Russian man-mountain she seemed never to have a problem with. As much as I'd imagined of being the one who she had her arms and legs wrapped around, I couldn't help but be happy that she had someone there who would fight to the death for her... and I knew he would.

So, I sat back and waited...

The day of the hearing, I got up and sat out on the deck chairs by the pool and had a smoke; it calmed me somewhat but it didn't stop my mind from wandering. I couldn't sit still any longer so I got up and dove into the deep end to start on a few laps. When my arms and legs felt like rubber, I got out and went upstairs to have a shower. I looked around my room thinking of what I could do and my eyes landed on my IPod. I layed back on my bed and plugged in earphones, turning up the volume to drown out my thoughts. It worked for a while but soon, even that was driving me crazy. So I got out my 'Zombie Apocalypse' playstation game for some brain numbing digital slaughter; maybe I could pretend they were all Jesse, Ralf and Aaron and annihilate their asses.

By 11:30am, I found myself in the lounge room with a DVD on; I couldn't really say what I put in as I really wasn't watching... I was brought out of my thoughts when the doorbell rang, jolting me out of the soft leather seating. Before walking to the door however, I bent down and pressed the 'record' button on the tape recorder under the lamp table. I needed to keep a record of what I was about to say.

I almost smiled when I opened the door; instead I creased my brow in a look of confusion. "Aunt Tiana... Detective... Is there something wrong? Has something happened?"

"No, nothing's wrong. Are your parents home Adrian?" My aunt asked.

"No, they're at work, you know that."

"Mind if we come in?" Morris asked. I shook my head 'no', and stepped back giving them enough room to enter.

"What's going on?"

"I was wondering if we could ask you a few questions. I know you're over eighteen but if you'd like your parents to be here, we can wait while you call them."

I looked over to my aunt and raised my eyebrows in question. I knew what they were going to be asking me, but I had to look like I was confused. "Do I?" I asked her.

"No, but it's up to you." Tiana said. I shook my head again and led them both into the lounge room and turned the TV off before sitting down.

"Adrian," Morris started. "We wanted to ask you about something that came up in court this morning. Aaron Voda said that he sent you a text message early in the evening, on the night Miss Hathaway was attacked. Can you confirm that?"

"No..." I said slowly. I looked back to my aunt to see her watching me closely, if anyone would be able to find a crack in my story, it would be her, I had to make her believe me. "What did he say it said?"

"Apparently, he text you that he knew that Jesse was going to do something at the party and needed your help."

I gave a snort as I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

"What?" My aunt asked.

"I was at the grocery store a couple of weeks ago when a '_friend' _of Aaron's came up to me and said that Aaron wanted to see me."

"At the jail?"

"Yeah... I told him to tell Aaron to go to hell but he said that Aaron had information that could help in Rose's case... so I went."

"Why would you do something like that?" Tiana asked shaking her head.

"Do you know this 'friend's' name?" Morris asked.

"No, I have no idea who it was, he just said he was a friend, and I went because it's Rose, and I thought that I might be able to get something out of him that he wouldn't tell you."

"What did he have to say?" Morris asked me.

"Well, as I suspected, he had nothing. All he wanted was for me to be an alibi; to say that he asked for my help in stopping Jesse and Ralf from doing something to one of the girls at the party. I told him there was no way in hell that I would be helping him; that he and his _degenerate friends _deserved to rot because of what they did. They didn't just hurt Rose, they _killed_ Mason... I got up to leave when I realised that he wouldn't give me anything to help the case but when I got to the door, he called my name..."

"What did he want?"

"He said that if I didn't help and they went to jail... when they got out, they'd not only finish what they started with Rose, but all the girls I was friends with too, including my mother. His last words were... 'In jail, we'll have access to all sorts of _helpful _people; we don't even need to do it ourselves.'... I didn't need to ask what he meant by that but I said nothing; I just walked out."

"Why didn't you say anything about this before now, Adrian?" Tiana asked me.

"This is Aaron we're talking about here..." I said with raised eyebrows, "...I took his threats with a grain of salt... if that. He's a high school kid for shit sake; what sort of contacts could he possibly get in jail... other than the intimate kind."

Morris turned to my aunt and I could see her putting her thoughts into order. "Do you think this is his way of trying to put doubt into his part in the attack?"

"More than likely. From what everyone has said, Aaron's as bad as the other two under that 'boy next door' exterior, just slyer.

"Okay, well, thanks for your help, Adrian. If we need to speak to you again about this, we'll call you, okay?"

"No probs."

I walked them to the front door and waved to my aunt as she got into the car. Hopefully she believed me. I had no reason to think she didn't, after all... my aunt called bullshit as soon as she saw it. I closed the door and went back to the lounge room where I bent down to retrieve the small recorder. I wound it back a bit and then pressed play...

_Why didn't you say anything about this before now, Adrian? _

_This is Aaron we're talking about here; I took his threats with a grain of salt... if that. _

I pressed the stop button with a smile and walked back up to my room where I put the recorder in the top draw of my bedside table... I would go over it later tonight where I would transcribe it and go over my story... I couldn't afford to make any mistakes now and get caught out in a lie...

I went back downstairs and grabbed myself a beer... yeah, it was a little early but my nerves were a little frayed... I gathered that my aunt and her partner came straight from the courthouse and they'd been here a couple of hours so I expected that Rose would be home too by now, so I decided to go next door and see how she was handling it all...

Mr D opened the door and I followed him inside where I was soon pounced upon by Lissa. I couldn't help but laugh at the barrage of questions and tried to keep track until I could get a word in edgewise... I played the part and told them that I hadn't got a text from Aaron and for the most part, I think the all believed me... All except the Russian, of course... I could feel his eyes on me as we all talked around the table...

I had to be careful with what I said because I hadn't had a chance to listen back to the recording of my conversation with my aunt and her partner; I knew that whatever I said now would _never _be forgotten by him...

I excused myself to go to the bathroom when Dimitri's not so sly glances got too much; what I didn't expect was for him to be waiting for me when I came back into the hallway.

"Why do you think he said what he did under oath if there was no way to back it up?" He asked me. There was no preamble, just straight to the guts...

"I have no idea; maybe he was trying to save his own skin." I knew that I should be looking him in the eye as I spoke; only liars can't look you in the eye, but I hadn't been expecting him to pounce this quickly. I had to pull myself together.

"What did you do Adrian?"

I looked up at him with the confidence that I should have had to begin with, I could only hope to pull myself out of the hole I'd just dug...

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing, Dimitri." But I could see that he didn't believe a word I'd just said.

"Adrian..."

"Dimitri... have you ever heard of the saying, 'What you don't know, won't hurt you.'? Well, don't ask anything else and then I won't have to lie to you. Just keep doing whatever it is that you're doing with Rose. I'm not stupid, I know that she's where she is today because of you. When we were younger, she was the annoying girl that wanted to play boy games, but she was always like a sister to me – then she grew up. I'm glad she has you, look after her."

"With my life." He said. I didn't want to stand around to see if he was as good in interrogation as I thought he'd be. I gave a quick pat on his shoulder and I high-tailed it past him. I listened intently to see if he was going to follow or demand answers; I was more than relieved when he didn't.

It was only a few minutes later that he joined us in the games room. I looked up and even though he looked at me directly, I could see that he wasn't going to ask what I'd done again...

"So, we're getting closer to the end of the holidays guys... does anyone have something exciting planned?" I asked as I looked around the room.

"Not really, why?" Lissa asked wearily.

"Well, I for one am getting so friggin bored sitting around here and if I don't do something soon, I'm gonna lose my mind, and a crazy Adrian is _not _a pleasant sight."

"Soooo... you've been _crazy _all these years then?" Rose asked dryly. I scowled at her but inside, I was grinning like a Cheshire cat at seeing a bit of the _'spunky Rose'_ we all knew and loved.

"Funny Rose..." Everyone laughed and Lissa leant over to her to high-five Rose's hand... "We need to blow this popsicle stand and go somewhere for a while, just relax and leave all this shit behind even if it's just for a week."

I could see that Rose rather liked the idea of getting away but then something popped into her head... "We can't. Dimitri has to start work again on Monday."

"And Christian is still recovering, there's not a lot we could do even if we could go." Lissa said.

"You should know by now not to open your mouth Adrian." Andre mumbled.

"Fine... None of you appreciate me. Why is it so hard to believe that I could make a real contribution in these dark times? My cigarettes and I are going outside. At least they show me respect." I got up and walked over to the French doors off the games room to the sounds of laughing and ribbing of my friends.

"_Come back Adrian... you know we love you... sooky boy..." _

I walked out into the yard between this house and my own and as I lit up my cigarette, a thought came to me. I pulled out my phone and scrolled down my contact list. When I came to the name I was looking for, I pressed the button and waited for them to pick up.

"Hello."

"Ms Hathaway? This is Adrian Ivashkov; I live next door to Lissa."

"Yes Adrian, is something wrong with Rose?" I grinned at the concern I heard in her voice and realised this may just go easier than I thought it would.

"No, nothing's wrong really, I just wanted to run something by you. You see, on the outside, Rose looks like she's is doing really well and while I think she _is _handling things quite well, I also think she needs to distance herself from everything for a while too..."

"What are you getting at Adrian?"

"Well, I just suggested that we all go somewhere for a week; somewhere that she can just not think, you know... Lissa could do with some space too considering what went down recently."

"Yeah, that was... unexpected. But I don't see why you're calling me."

"Well, she won't go because Dimitri has to go back to work next week. What I wanted to ask is if there is any possibility that it could be _swung_ that he could treat the next week as a security job, you know, looking after your daughter..."

I lifted my cigarette to my lips and pulled in a drag as I listened to the silence on the other end. Just as I was about to speak up and try a different angle, Mommy dearest spoke up.

"That'll be fine. Tell Dimitri to call me in the morning and we'll have a chat. I'll need to swap a few things around tonight, but I agree... the girls could use a week away."

"Excellent, thanks Ms Hathaway."

"Okay." I didn't get to say anything else as the line went dead... No 'how's my daughter?', 'is she alright?'... Janine Hathaway was one cold fish... I thanked God she wasn't _my _mother!

I sat on the wooden bench in the garden for another minute while I finished my smoke and thought about where we could go... Somewhere relaxing, somewhere different from here, somewhere that wouldn't be too taxing on Christian and his recovery...

I smiled when I thought of the perfect place...

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**A/N:** Well... we're getting closer to the end... :-( But I wanted to take this opportunity to say a most heartfelt and humbling thank you to everyone who messaged me over the 'Lily' review on Achilles. You guys are absolutely fantastic. I can't express how much your support in my stories means to me. I love writing and for those who asked... NO! I won't stop writing because of her... What she said only showed just how delusional she really is.

But enough of that... I really hope you enjoyed this chapter and hearing from the elusive Adrian. He'll probably have a little more to say in upcoming chapters but he won't be so... serious! hehehe

Anyway, thanks again...  
Sandy


	35. Chapter 28 Baby Let Your Hair Hang Down

**A/N:**Hi everyone, so, so sorry for the delay but I won't bore you with it now... Thanks to my wonderful beta, Deliciouse and to SassyNoles for her suggestions... I hope you all like this...  
More at the end...  
Sandy

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**Chapter 28 Baby let you hair hang down.**

"Let me get this straight..." I said shaking my head with closed eyes... "You're taking all of us to your family's private island?"

"Yup." Adrian said smiling. He'd gone outside for a cigarette but then suddenly we noticed that he'd been gone for ages; longer than it would normally take someone to smoke one cigarette. When Andre had gone out to find him, he was on his way back from his house.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because, there are a lot of people in this room that need to heal in one way or another and the island is the best place on earth to do that. It's the one place that I could go as I was growing up where my troubles never followed."

_Wow, who would have thought that Adrian could be so deep...? _I thought to myself.

"But isn't it like in..."

"Michigan, yeah." He filled in.

"I'm in, when do we leave?" Christian said from the lounge chair.

"We can leave in the morning. My father is flying into Detroit for business so he said that we can hitch with him in the company jet."

"We can't Adrian, Dimitri has work on Monday."

"Well... yes and no..."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, instantly worried.

"Rose, it's all been worked out okay? I rang your mother..."

"You _what?_"

"Settle petal... She's all in favour for a little getaway; she even said that Dimitri can be your bodyguard for the week... though he'll probably give new meaning to the term 'bodyguard'..."

"You can say that again!"

"Shut up Christian..." I snapped. "She actually said she's in favour of me going away...? Knowing Dimitri will be there...? With me... for a week?"

"Yup, yup and yup..."

"Then how will we get to the island?" Andre asked him.

"Helicopter..." By Adrian's face, I supposed that we should have already known that...

"Of course he'd have a helicopter..." Christian mumbled under his breath. I tried unsuccessfully to suppress the grin that spread over my face. Even though Christian's family was far from poor, they certainly didn't have the cash flow that the Ivashkov's had. His sarcastic tongue was pretty much the only thing we had in common, other than Lissa.

"It's not mine you douche... it's the company's. Anyway... pack your bags kiddies for a week of sun, swimming and all round debauchery."

"Your lifestyle isn't always as appealing to the _normal_ people of society as it is to you, Adrian." Dimitri remarked dryly. The room erupted in peals of laughter while I stood there with my mouth open in shock... Dimitri was normally such a reserved person and to hear him so... spunky... so snarky, was a shock to say the least; a pleasant one though. I was secretly happy to see a little of my attitude coming out in him.

"Oh, burn Adrian..." Andre said snickering. Adrian answered by flipping him off with a scowl.

"You're quite welcome to stay here Dimitri if my '_lifestyle'_ is not to your liking. I'd be more than happy to show Rose a good time in your stead."

My eyes flicked over to Dimitri and sure enough, if looks could kill, Adrian would be six feet under by now... In fact, every eye in the room was directed to the rather large Russian God...

Slowly, I saw one side of his mouth pull upwards, yet it was in complete opposition to the emotion in his eyes. "Well, you could try... but I'm afraid that Rose now knows just how much _fun _I can provide, so anything you could show her would just pale in comparison_._"

_Holy shit... he has a point though... _I thought to myself. Now probably wouldn't be a good time to announce that Adrian's 'good time' sounded like a lot of fun... Yeahhhh, probably not!

"Okay..." I said interrupting before the testosterone got any more out of hand. "So, tell us more about the island. What's it called?"

"Hmm..." he said snickering. "Well, you should like this... It's called Rose Island."

"It's true Rose." Lissa said when I gave him a look that said I didn't believe him.

"I used to go there a lot as a kid when we went to visit Aunt Cilla and Uncle James. Aunt Cilla was mom's sister. It's been in my uncle's family for years, the Rose family and handed down to Uncle James when his parents died, but because he and Aunt Cilla didn't have any kids when they were killed in the car crash, it was left to my parents in their wills."

"How big is it?" Christian asked.

"Just over twenty one acres. It has the main house plus a guest house and a boat house amongst other things."

Liss and I turned to look at each other at the same time and by the look in her eyes, she was thinking the same thing I was... _JET SKIS! _We were badass when it came to jet skis. It wasn't until later that night that I realised that there would be no jet skiing for me... Damn shoulder...

"Okay then, I'll be off and I'll see you all in my driveway at 6am, so I suggest you all get packing. Oh, by the way, Dimitri... Rose's mom wants you to call her in the morning. Night all..." He said as he made his way out of the house.

"Adrian, wait up..." I called out to him; I caught up to him out on the lawn. "Thank you for this. You didn't have to."

"I know but you should know me by now Rose, I've always got an ulterior motive."

"And what would that be?" I asked almost afraid to hear what he had to say.

"Well, apart from getting to see you walk around for a whole week in a bikini, I get a whole week to mess with your boyfriend."

I didn't know what to say to that... I started laughing, thinking he was joking but then his face didn't change... "You're serious?"

"I'm gonna have so much fun..."

"You're gonna come home with less teeth than you left with if you follow through with that little plan. Remember those Tae Kwon Do classes that you messed around in? He was the instructor remember... you know, the one with the _black _belt!"

"Eh... he'd never hit me, my face is too pretty." He smirked. With a wink he turned around and walked back to his house, laughing all the way.

=x=

"I can't believe this place has its own helipad." Christian said as we all climbed out of the helicopter.

"Well, I don't think it would be too smart to land this thing in the water, Hot Stuff, so a helipad sort of makes sense." I said.

"Oh... you're so witty." He drawled. "You know, if you weren't so – _witty_, you'd be fun to hang around."

"Funny, I feel the same way about you."

"Will you two quit it!" Lissa yelled out. I couldn't help but stick my tongue out; I had to have the last word even if it wasn't actually a word...

"Mature Rose, real mature." Christian said grinning. Yeah... he loved our banter as much as I did.

"I thought so..." I said rolling my eyes.

"Okay..." Adrian said as we all walked towards the house. "There are five bedrooms in the main house and another three in the guesthouse, we can either all stay in the main house or one of you two..." indicating between Lissa and Christian, and Dimitri and I, "...may like a bit of privacy."

_Privacy... that sounds good! _I thought to myself as my eyes quickly darted to my man. Even Mini Me was rubbing her hands together in anticipation...

"No, we're all staying together." Liss said, stomping on both mine and Mini Me's plans, this time it was her that stuck her tongue out... "We're here to have fun and that won't happen if we're all split up."

_Fine..._

A little under an hour later, we'd all found the rooms we wanted and had unpacked and were congregated in the games room.

"So, there are three jet skis and a ski boat in the shed as well as a couple of kayaks. Dad also told me to tell everyone that we are _not _to use them unless we have life vests on... so you've all been told. In the storage shed on the right of the boat shed there are a couple of wind boards too, so we have plenty of things to play with."

"Any tubes?" Christian asked. I couldn't help but grin when I saw Adrian's face... yeah!

"Not that it will matter to you or Rose, but yes there are tubes." I was a little disappointed that I wouldn't get to see Christian face plant in the water behind the boat. It was something that we'd done over summer holidays a couple of years ago in Hawaii with Lissa's family. Andre held on rather expertly for a good ten minutes as his father drove the boat only to come-a-gutsa when the tube hit the boats wake at an odd angle. I laughed so hard until I realised that hitting the water at such speeds was like hitting concrete, and Andre had been winded rather badly. Mrs D thought he may have actually broken a rib or two...

"So, if everyone wants to go get changed, I'll meet you all down by the boat shed." I noticed that Adrian had been the only one who had come downstairs already in his board shorts. "Andre, you know where all the towels are kept, don't you?"

"Yeah, I'll show everyone."

With that, he left us all to go change so that we could get our day started. Although, once I saw my own personal God in his black and gold boardies, I thought the day could be better spent in our bedroom. "What?" He asked when he noticed me staring.

"God, you're gorgeous." I murmured as my eyes travelled his stunning body. There was no questioning his stunning good looks; beautiful yet every inch a man. Deep brown eyes supported by chiselled cheek bones; a strong, angular jaw that I just wanted to sink my teeth into... Broad muscular shoulders that tapered down to narrow hips... Washboard abs boarded by a very lickable, muscular 'V' that drew your eyes to the little smattering of dark brown hair that surrounded his navel; hair that led all the way down to his amazing cock._ Oh God... I'm horny!_

"Then I'm not the only one. You Roza... are simply breathtaking, and if Adrian says one word in regards to your bikini, he'll find there's more than one use for that tube he's so fond of..."

I had to bite my lip to stop from laughing. The image of Dimitri showing Adrian a new use for the tube was just too funny...

"Come on Love, I want to get you all wet..."

_Oh... _"You already have." I said in a voice that surprised even me... I was all breathless and wanton... In the blink of an eye, I was in his arms.

"Really..." he whispered against my neck. "How wet?"

"Very... and getting wetter by the second." My eyes rolled as his lips made their way to the front of my neck; I wasn't even aware that my feet were no longer on the ground at first, I just thought it was the normal floaty feeling I got when he kissed me. The hand that wasn't holding me up moved down my side; his thumb circling then flicking over the now hard tip of my breast before inching downwards... _Oh, yeah..._

_KNOCK... KNOCK... KNOCK! _

"Oh you've got to be kidding me..." I moaned. Dimitri laughed quietly against my chest; the feel of his breath made my skin prickle.

"What are you two doing in there?" Adrian said on the other side of the door.

"None of your business Adrian! Go away!" I called out. I was still in Dimitri's arms but my feet were now back on the floor... _Thanks a lot, cockblocker! _

"We should probably get going." Dimitri said against my lips.

"No, we shouldn't." I tried to keep him with me by holding his face in my hands but as normal... he's stronger than me. "I'm in favour of picking up where we were so rudely interrupted."

"You should listen to your boyfriend, Rose..." I could hear the grin in Adrian's voice... Prick wasn't going to go away...

"And you should listen to me. I thought I told you to go away, Adrian."

"Yeah, you did... but where would be the fun in that? Come on you two... Put your clothes back on and join the rest of us." Suddenly I remembered Adrian's words from the night before... _'I get a whole week to mess with your boyfriend.' _I had a bad feeling that this wouldn't be the last time he ruined my plans this week...

"Go away Adrian..." My voice was now more than a little annoyed.

"He's not going to go away you know." Dimitri said shaking his head.

"Yeah, what he said!" Adrian called out.

I rolled my eyes and went to open the door. "You're a pain in the ass, you know that?"

"Yeah, but I'm your pain in the ass... and his." He said laughing. "Now, get your bikini clad ass downstairs."

I didn't say anything else... I just gave him the best stink eye I could muster up and shut the door in his face. His answer was laughter... followed by a soft thump as he leant against the door. When he started whistling, I couldn't take it anymore.

I turned my head around to look at Dimitri as a plan developed in my mind. Dimitri's eyebrow lifted in question of my evil smirk. I took a step backwards and opened the door.

"Oh SHIT!" Adrian yelled as he fell backwards into the room.

"Sorry Adrian... I don't do threesomes." I said before walking out into the hall. "Are you coming Dimitri?"

"Not right now apparently." He snickered behind me. I seriously loved this new side to Dimitri. Who knew he could be so... witty!

We made our way down to the water hand in hand; Adrian had obviously prepped and removed the boat from the shed along with a couple of the kayaks and tubes before coming up to ruin all my fun. I snickered as the visual of Dimitri shoving those tubes somewhere that Adrian wouldn't appreciate, flashed into my mind.

We walked along the short jetty where Liss and Christian were sitting under a large beach umbrella. "Huh, that was quick you two... " Christian said smirking. "I thought you'd take at least ten minutes."

"Nah, I know that's how long you take, but a real man... a man like Dimitri, that's how long we kiss for, then there's the real foreplay..."

"AH! LA LA LA... Not _listening..." _He says with his fingers in his ears.

"Then after that comes the _really_ exciting stuff..."

"Liss, make her stop!" He whined into her laughing body.

"Then I get to feel his huge..."

"_AHHH_! NO! No more... _please_!"

"Throbbing..."

And he's up, out of the chair and running...

Lissa is holding her side as she's laughing her ass off... Dimitri is much the same. Andre is lying on the floor of the boat gasping for breath...

"HEART!" I scream out as Christian continues to run away... "HIS HUGE, THROBBING HEART! WHERE YA GOIN' CHRISTIAN... I'M NOT FINISHED! I HAVEN'T EVEN GOT TO THE GOOD PART YET... COME BACK!"

God, he was so easy... Mini Me was smirking and I could tell by her demeanour that she was thinking up some more goodies to ply him with; maybe I could use some of them for Adrian...

"You're so bad Rose..." Lissa says as she continues to giggle. Then she continues a little more seriously. "I'm glad you're back, sister." I turn around and see a wistful smile on her face.

I know what she means... I've begun to feel more like my old self over the last couple of weeks, more so since the hearing. It _was _good to see the sass and snark return. "Me too."

=x=

Four hours later, we all dragged our tired, wet and slightly red selves back up to the house. Not long after we'd started swimming, a boat had pulled up to the jetty, full of all sorts of goodies. Adrian's mom had organised for food and drinks, (good and bad) to be delivered to us. I couldn't believe that I, of all people, hadn't thought about what we were going to be eating while on the island. But... I didn't have to worry about that _now_, did I?

"So, whatya cookin', Rose?" Adrian asked with a smirk as we all stood in the kitchen.

"Oh, I don't know, Adrian... I could always whip up my specialty, you know, a plate load of gut rot with a side order of food poisoning?"

Christian sprayed the mouthful of coke he'd just taken a swig of, out through his nose. Lissa and I shrieked as we tried to dodge it while everyone else fell about laughing... everyone except Christian who was coughing up a storm and holding his injured shoulder.

"Will you two get out of here..." Lissa said while going to Christian's aide. "...before you do or say something that will literally make him bust his stitches."

_If you say so... _I thought to myself smugly. No-one needed to know that I could actually cook when I wanted to... I just don't happen to want to this week, I am injured after all. "No probs... call if you want my input."

"I won't..." she said as we all walked out of the kitchen. "Christian can help me." I took everything in me to not say the one liner that Mini Me was pleading with me to say...

Burrito's was what Liss had cooked up and they went down exceptionally well. Then we all went to the lounge room to watch a movie, though I doubt most saw it. My eyes started to droop half way through but when I looked around, Christian, Adrian and Lissa were already asleep. When I turned the movie off, Adrian's eyes opened and he asked if it was already finished. Fifteen minutes later, I was curled up in the arms of Dimitri; he smelled _so_ good!

The next morning, my eyes opened and I was alone... "Dimitri?" I called out but was met with silence. I gave a quick stretch before sliding my legs over the side of the bed. I looked out the window as I passed it and smiled... There, sitting on the jetty were the boys... and their fishing rods! Just then Dimitri was furiously winding in his line and by the looks of the others, this wasn't his first. His smug smile sort of confirmed it when he held up his prize and Adrian just glared before turning back to the water. Poor him... the old adage of 'plenty of fish in the sea' just didn't seem to be working for him this morning obviously.

I sat on one of the kitchen stools as Liss cooked up bacon and eggs. "So, not fish for breakfast?" I asked smiling.

"Not if it means relying on Adrian or Christian to catch them." She giggled.

"Dimitri seems to be adept at fishing; although I don't know why that should come as a shock... he's good at everything he does."

"Really - everything?"

"Yes... everything." I said waggling my eyebrows. We chatted while we ate, it was good to do this again, it had been a while since we just sat and talked about nothing. It was a rule that we all agreed to in the helicopter ride... no talking about our troubles while at the island. Just as we were about to get up and clean away our breakfasts, the boys walked in.

Adrian and Christian looked as if their puppies had just pissed on their favourite toys, Andre was at least a little bit happier as he talked to a radiant Dimitri...

"So... numbers?" Lissa asked.

"Those two dumb asses..." Andre said pointing to the pouters, "... obviously didn't realise that we were out there to _catch _the fish and not _feed _the fish. I caught three and Moby Dick here caught ten."

I couldn't stop the _very_ unladylike snort that came out of me before cracking up... _Moby Dick... _Maybe that could be his new catch phrase... 'Dimitri, A.K.A Moby Dick – Ready, Willing & Able to provide a whale of a good time...' Obviously after Lissa's and my breakfast convo, she knew exactly what was going through my head... Mini Me was decked out in a rather inappropriate sailors outfit...

"You just gave us bad bait to make yourselves look good, that's all." Adrian said like a petulant child.

"Yeah, what he said."

=x=

By day four, my shoulder was so much better that Liss and I actually took the Jet Ski's out for a bit. I didn't do anything too taxing but we still had a lot of fun. Adrian was a little happier for the fact that he'd actually caught some fish that morning, but by now, we were all getting a little sick and tired of fish for lunch... There were only so many ways one could cook up Bass, Perch and Panfish...

That afternoon, Liss and I were down by the water's edge picking up small shells when we heard a sound. We both looked up and saw the boat the delivered our food heading towards us. All of a sudden, Liss started squealing and jumping around, then I saw why. Mia and Eddie... I turned around and saw the guys all standing watching us. Adrian had the largest smirk on his face. How on earth was I going to tease him now...

"Hey Chickee Babes!" Mia yelled out as they pulled up beside the dock. "I can't believe you came here without me Bitches."

My heart did a little flop when I looked at Eddie. Even though he had a much different complexion to Mason, they shared enough features to remind me. I think he knew too.

"Hey Rose, Lissa. How are you two?"

"We're great; I see California was fun..." Liss said in reference to her glow; Mia's tan was better than ours.

"Yeah, we had a great time. Eddie's family is an absolute hoot, but gees... Look at this place."

"I know..." Liss took one of the bags that I'd grabbed out of the boat, citing that I still shouldn't be lifting heavy things. "I have another arm you know."

She stuck her tongue at me just as the guys reached us and soon we had everything brought up to the house. We spent that night chilling on the deck, throwing back a few bottles of white wine with the BBQ that the guys cooked up. I couldn't help but smile as I leant back against Dimitri's muscular chest and took in the laughing faces of my friends. I sighed in contentment as I thought that I never wanted to leave this island...

"So, how many of these bottles are yours Adrian?" Mia asked.

"Not that many."

"No... that's not many at all, is it Adrian? The other hundred or so you've polished off over the last few days are already in the garbage." Christian said smirking.

"I think they were brought here before we even arrived." Andre said smiling. "Adrian's nothing if not prepared."

"Yeah, ever the boy scout." Dimitri mumbled, though everyone heard him. I'm sure they, as well as I, were having a hard time picturing Adrian as a boy scout.

"I'll have you know that there's a few bottles here that even belong to the normally _cautious Christian _over here and if you believe it or not... _this..._" he said bending down and then holding up an empty Vodka bottle, "... was polished off by none other than our _revelling _Russian over there."

"Yes, but unlike you Adrian, Dimitri can handle his alcohol." I said dryly.

"I handle my alcohol just fine thank you very much... Plus, I've never heard any complaints before."

"Adrian, you may think you're the Prince of Slick where the ladies are concerned, but you don't see the looks you get when you're slobbering all over them." Andre said smiling.

"I don't slobber; I'm just really friendly..."

=x=

On the last day the sky opened up, forcing us to stay indoors. It didn't worry any of us, we were all starting to look like half baked lobsters anyway and as everyone sat around playing the playstation or cards; I was able to pull Dimitri away for some... quiet time.

"You don't want to play Rose?" he asked as I shut our bedroom door behind him.

"Yes, I do, but not with them... And I don't give a shit if they march a bloody marching band past that door; it's not opening again for quite some time."

"Yes Ma'am. So, what did you have in mind? Pin the tail on the Donkey? Scrabble..."

"Hide the sausage..." I giggled.

"Oh, I don't know that game, you'll have to explain it to me... in detail."

I laughed as I wrapped my arms around his neck. "I'm good at detail." I said as he wrapped his arms around my body and lifted me up.

"Good to know." I sighed as his lips came against mine. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he started walking and felt myself tip backwards as he laid us onto the bed. "I love you, so much."

"I love you too."

No-one came to our door, no-one interrupted us, so no-one died a horrible, painful death... We heard soft laughter and jokes at our expense as everyone went to their rooms that night, mainly from Adrian. The next morning, I woke up to see Dimitri zipping up the last of our luggage.

"Hey you." I said in a sleepy voice. "Come back here." No argument was made as he smiled and climbed back into bed. I knew that we weren't leaving for another couple of hours and I wanted to take advantage of the quiet while we had it. I didn't know what was going to happen once we got back to reality, I didn't know how I was going to sleep without him beside me.

"What's going through your mind, Roza." He asked as he held me in his arms. I thought about how to answer that for a few seconds before answering.

"Umm... Just... what's gonna happen when we get back." I said as my fingers played in the slight splattering of hair on his chest.

"What do you mean?"

"I want to stay like this forever, I don't want to..."

He moved slightly so that he could look down at me and put his fingers under my chin so that he could look me in the eye. "What... you don't want what?"

"I don't want to wake up without you if I don't have to." His growing smile made me feel a little embarrassed.

"Well, what if I said you didn't have to."

"What do you mean? Are you going to move into the Dragomir's?"

"We could I suppose or we could... find somewhere together, on our own." I was shocked... happy but shocked. He must have thought my shock meant something else. "...Or not..."

"You want... you want to... move in together?"

"I know we haven't been together all that long and you're only eighteen but... I love you Rose and that's not going to change. I don't want to be without you either; I'll be there no matter what. We can either keep things the way they are or we can see if we can be together either at my mother's house or the Dragomir's... or we can..."

"Have our own place." I stated matter-of-factly.

"Yeah... only if that's what you want. But Rose, know that I'll be happy no matter what you want to do, as long as I do it with you."

_Aww... _"You're so sappy!" I giggled.

"Mmm, don't tell anyone."

"Wouldn't dream of it." Just then a loud banging emanated throughout the room.

"I know you're up you two... I can hear you talking. That is talking, isn't it?"

"No Adrian, it's not..." I yelled out. "Oh Dimitri... yeah, right there... Oh! God, yes... yes... YES!" Dimitri just smirked and shook his head at me... the one on his shoulders...

"Very funny Rose."

"Oh..." I moaned. "Oh Dimitri, I'm... I'm... I'm coming... Oh..."

"Oh shit..." I heard Adrian whisper before we heard him running down the hall.

I burst out laughing at the same time as Dimitri... "Was it good for you Lover?" I asked.

"It wasn't bad, but now I'm..." He said no more but grabbed my hand and pressed it against his now hard cock. I guess I was rather convincing... "And after a performance like that, I feel like you should get something out of it."

I let out a somewhat giddy squeal as he bent over me and locked his lips to mine. I must remember to thank Adrian for this wonderful week... yeah, I must remember...

* * *

Okay... first of all, thanks for sticking with me, I know I've been so very slack with the updating... My life has been busy lately! My hubby surprised me with a little holiday for our Anniversay, then I got a really bad burn on my right hand when one of the horses here pulled back and the nylon lead rope did it's damage... But I'm on the mend...

Second, Just to let you know that there are photos on my facebook page of the island and I'll even post some of our little getaway and my hand... :-)

And lastly... I've decided (with the help of some of you readers) that because this story only has a few chapters left, and it's really really hard to go back and forth between the two stories and keep the characters straight in my head; I'm going to finish this story off first. When I finish a FB chapter, it takes ages to get back into "Achilles Rose & Dimitri brain" and then when I finish Achilles, it's hard to go back to "FB Rose & Dimitri"...so I'm going to finish off this story first before updating Achilles... (but I WON'T forget Achilles... I love it too much!) This way I should get the chapters out faster too! I hope you all understand...

Well, that's it for now, so... I'll see you all again soon! :-) Sandy!


	36. Chapter 29 Shock! Horror!

**A/N: **Yes my lovlies... your eyes are NOT deceiving you... this _is _another chapter... You can all get back up off the ground now... I'll wait! heheheh AND you'll all be happy to know that the next chapter is already half done... (I KNOW... wonders will never cease)... LOL!

Anyhoo... That's all from me... I hope you all like this chapter.  
Sandy

* * *

**Chapter 29 **

The morning after we got home from the island, found me outside the Ivashkov house.

"Ms Hathaway." Harrison the butler greeted me with a smile. "You're up bright and early. What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if Adrian is awake."

I saw the smile pull at his mouth an instant before he reined it in. "Ah, no... It's a little on the early side for Mr Adrian to be out of bed."

"Do you think his parents would be upset if I went upstairs and woke him up?"

"I don't think it's his parents you'd have to worry about Rose... it's more _him _I'd be worried about."

"Ah... leave it to me."

"Don't say I didn't warn you miss."

I gave him a wink as I walked past him. Harrison was good people... There was a time when I was about ten that I planned on marrying him. I pictured him bringing me breakfast in bed and everything.

I contemplated knocking, I wasn't sure if he slept in the raw or not... But I didn't want to give him the chance to tell me to get lost. So I compromised... I wrapped my hand around the door handle and closed my eyes...

"Adrian! Wake up!" I shouted.

"What the... what's... Rose? What are you...? Rose?" Oh... that last touting of my name was more in exasperation than anything...

"Are you decent?"

"Well, that's open for discussion, but if you're asking if I'm clothed then no... I'm not."

_Figures! _"Well, hurry up and get clothed, my eyes want to open." _Oh shit... that came out wrong. _I lifted my hands and placed them over my face...

"Don't let me stop them..." I heard the smile in his voice... I suppose I deserved that one.

I heard the rustling of sheets and the sounds of his foot falls as he walked across the carpet. I don't know what made me do it... but I peeked! For years I had a crush on Adrian and just because I was in love with Dimitri didn't make me any less curious.

"HUH! I knew you had to look!"

"Oh you shit..." He wasn't naked... Exasperated and slightly embarrassed, I turned around to walk out of his room.

"Rose! Wait... come back." _No_... "I'm sorry..." He said laughing. I stopped when his hand wrapped around my shoulder. "Are you going to tell me why you came here at such an ungodly hour of the morning?"

"It's 10 o'clock Adrian... God's been up for hours."

"Well, in this household, it's ungodly... Care to enlighten me?"

I was here now; I may as well say what I came to say... "I wanted to thank you... for this last week. It was exactly what I needed, what we all needed. You're a good friend Adrian and I wanted to tell you how much what you did, means to me..."

A small smile pulled at his lips... not his usual panty melting smirk, but a genuine one. "You're very welcome Rose. It was my pleasure and I'm happy that you enjoyed yourself. Though it did score me some wicked bikini vision for the spank bank..."

"Oh God..." I growled before turning away from him. He's such a pig sometimes...

"I'm kidding... I'm kidding..." he laughed. "Rose, stop... I'm just messing with ya! Don't go."

We went down to the kitchen to grab a coffee; apparently Adrian needed a little help in completely waking up. "Miss Hathaway." Harrison said when we appeared.

"Harrison... I return; with all limbs attached too, oh ye of little faith."

He laughed loudly as Adrian looked between the two of us. "Am I missing something?"

"Nah, nothing much; only Harrison's lack of confidence in me."

"Never..." he said feigning hurt.

"Okay..." Adrian said shaking his head. "You're both as weird as each other." We sat outside enjoying the morning sun; well, I did... He enjoyed his coffee and a cigarette.

"I hate to bring this up but do you know anything more about your case?" He asked as he took a drag.

"No, but hopefully it won't drag out too much longer." He nodded his head and we were quiet for a minute or two more.

"Are you going to college?"

"No, not right now. I know I'm a lot better and being around men isn't as daunting as what it has been, but I'm still not ready for the bombardment that is college... I know this... So I'm going to take six or twelve months off, I'm just going to play it by ear."

"That's good; you shouldn't let anyone push you into doing something you're not ready for. What about Lissa?"

"Well... she's doing the same. I tried to talk her out of it; she wants to be a doctor so bad, but she says that she needs time to process everything that's happened. That she won't be able to put everything into her studies with everything still so up in the air... so, we're going to travel..."

"Travel? Just you and Liss?"

"No... We'd tossed this idea around not long before the second attack at my parent's house, and now with everything else that's happened... We spoke more about it at the island; Dimitri and Christian will come with us."

"Overseas?"

"No... We'll stay here... do a road trip, just in case we need to get back quickly." I didn't need to go into detail; he knew I meant if we needed to deal with 'trial stuff'...

It was good talking to him. And before I left to go back home, I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him in thanks. It took him a second or two for his anxiety to vanish but I'm glad I did... I could see he knew how much it meant for me to do that.

=x=

The next week was good. Dimitri and I spent our time in between his house and mine. I must admit that being around his mom and sisters filled me with more peace than I'd felt in a long time. Everything was just so... calm at the Belikov house. It was exactly what I needed.

By Labor Day, we were ready to start planning our trip. Mr & Mrs D supported Lissa's decision to defer starting college; they knew all she needed was a little breathing room so that she could get her head back on straight.

In between planning and shopping trips for new clothes... (a must have apparently), we also helped Mia get ready to leave for college. It was weird knowing she'd be going off without us.

"Guys, it's really not that bad." She said smiling. "We weren't going to the same place anyway."

"I know, it's just..." Lissa shook her head and sighed.

"Do you regret..."

"NO!" Liss interrupted me. "No... Not at all. I need this, _we _need this. It's just something that I thought we'd all be doing together, you know... packing, sorting out what clothes we'd be taking and what we weren't... Talking about what we'd do once we got there... that sort of shit."

All Mia and I could do was nod... we knew exactly what she meant. As sad as we were that things weren't panning out as we thought they would, Liss and I also had a lot to look forward to.

We were going to spend the next six months on the road with our guys; and I know I was just about bursting with anticipation.

"So Rose..." Mia started. "You and Dimitri... you're like, a married couple already. You just seem to gravitate towards each other when you're in the same room..."

"They do don't they!" Lissa smiled.

"And that's a bad thing?" I asked.

"Not at all, I think it's great. So what's gonna happen once you guys get back?"

"Oh... we have a few things in mind." I smirked...

=x=

"I can't believe I won't see you guys for at least six months." Mia said. We were standing with her next to her parent's car, a car that was packed to the limit with her stuff. She was leaving for college... and we weren't going with her.

"We have your cell and you have ours as well as the guys, so you know that you can call us no matter what, right."

"Yeah, I know... it just won't be the same, you know?" All we could do was nod our heads. We knew exactly what she meant. From this day on, _nothing_ would be the same. Our lives were going in completely different directions. That said, not one of us was sad about that fact. "I'm gonna miss _us..._"

"So will we, but we're gonna call each other _every _Sunday night, okay... without fail. We won't let our threesome fall to the wayside." Lissa said.

"Come on Mia, time to go." Her mom said. With a group hug and a few happy tears, we said goodbye to our friend...

"I don't think I liked that." Liss said beside me as we watched the car drive around the corner of the street. I turned to look at her and snickered at her watery eyes. Honestly, she could cry at the opening of a birthday card...

"Rose." My smile fell instantly at the familiar voice behind me. I felt Liss stiffen slightly beside me as I took a deep breath and turned around.

"Hello mother."

"Hi Rose... Lissa, do you mind if I have a few minutes with my daughter please?"

"Oh, ah... sure." She said unsurely. I could see she didn't know if she should go or not.

"Not too far." I whispered through gritted teeth. She gave a quick nod before walking over to her car where it was parked at the curb. "What can I do for you?" Mini Me was now standing in a defensive position; her back to me in what looked to be a SWAT team uniform complete with a bullet proof jacket, combat boots and nun chucks... I guess she was gearing up for a fight...

"I was just talking to Dimitri on the phone." _Ah... _"He tried to tender his resignation."

_Resignation? That wasn't the plan... _"Um..."

"I didn't accept it, especially when he told me what was going on. I think going away will be good for you and for Lissa." She said looking towards the car.

"Yeah, it will, and having the guys there will ensure that we're safe. I could never do this without them." She knew I meant Dimitri more than Christian.

My mother looked down to the ground and shoved her hands into the pockets of her slacks; she looked slightly nervous... not a look I'd ever seen on my mother.

"I know I probably won't see you again before you leave next week, but there's... something that I..." She looked up and met my eyes as she squared her shoulders slightly. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry for not being the mother that you've deserved. I'm sorry for my lack of compassion and support, especially when you needed it the most."

_What the hell? _An image flashed in my mind... a huge cave, lined in flames; frozen flames... along with frozen demons and what seemed to be a frozen Lucifer...

_SHIT! Hell just froze over..._

I just stood there... mouth open... eyes popping... speechless... Words escaped me...

"It's a pretty sad state of affairs when I render my chatty daughter speechless simply because I apologised for my shortcomings... Rose...?"

I should say something... I look to Mini Me to help out but she's in a dead faint on the frozen floor at Beelzebub's feet...

"Um..." _Oh, that's bright Rose... _I turned my head in an effort to make sense of the words that just came out of her mouth and my eyes landed on the worried face of my friend... She quickly stood up and walked over to me.

"Are you okay?" She asked quietly. _Was I?_

"I just apologised to her." My mother offered. "As you can see, it's not something I do very often."

"I'm okay..." I said after gathering my shit together... I turned to my mother and saw what I could only think of as 'sincerity'... I actually think she was being truthful... "Thanks..." I said to her. She bit her bottom lip in a gesture that reminded me of myself and nodded her head. She knew that an apology, no matter how sincere, wouldn't fix all the hurt between us.

"Well... Have a good time on your trip and I hope you find the peace you need to move on in your life, both of you."

"Thanks..." I said. She gave a quick nod and went to walk back to her house. She stopped after a few steps and then turned around. "If you think of it, I'd love a call every now and again... to let me know you're okay." _Wow... _

"I can do that."

"Oh... um, your father wanted me to ask you if he could come see you tonight, at... your place... if you're going to be there, he has something he wants to give you before you leave."

"Sure." I say almost robotically. This day just keeps getting weirder and weirder as the minutes go by...

"Alright, I'll talk to you soon. Have a good holiday, bye Lissa."

"Goodbye Ms Hathaway."

Liss and I stood silently as we watched her walk back to my former residence and through the front door...

"Huh..." Liss said breaking the silence. Trust her... That simple sound was all it took for the wall of wonder to fracture and laughter spilled out... It started off as a giggle and with one look at Lissa's face; it fell into loud, gasping laughter from us both.

"Oh my God..." Was all I could say as I tried to breathe.

"What in hell brought that on?" Liss asked.

"I have no idea."

"Come on... Christian texted while I was in the car, he and Dimitri are at our place." I nodded and walked with her to the car. She walked to the driver's side and got in and I opened my door, but before I got in, I looked back to my old home... Mom stood at the living room window... I knew it took a lot for her to do what she'd just done, she was trying. I gave a small smile and wave in acknowledgement and then lowered myself into Lissa's car.

That night, we were all in the games room when Mr D walked in.

"Rose... you're dad's here."

"Oh, okay, thanks..." I looked over to Lissa and raised my eyebrows in a 'here we go' gesture. I got up and walked outside. He was sitting in the lounge room with Lissa's parents and as I approached, they didn't make a move to leave... God love 'em...

"Rose." Dad greeted.

"Hey... What's going on?" I asked.

He quickly glanced to Mr & Mrs D and I think he realised they were staying, so he went on... "I... I didn't know. Had I known, I would have... Well, it doesn't matter now does it?" _Yeah, it sort of did. _My thoughts must have been written all over my face. "I would have been the father I should have been, I'm sorry."

_Now _I had to sit down... Both of my parents apologising in the one day... not only was hell frozen over but now I was convinced that the earth was about to end...

"I wanted to give you something. Your mother told me of you upcoming trip. You don't have to use it if you don't want to, but... I'd like you to." He handed me a thin pile of papers... "It's an account I've made up in your name. There's more than enough money in there for anything you may want while you're away. Like I said, you don't have to use it if you don't want to but at least you know it's there if you _need _it."

I looked up at him before looking back to my other _parents_; Mrs D had a soft smile on her lips as she looked at me. I knew what she was thinking... 'He's trying'...

"Thanks Dad. I appreciate this." I said looking into his eyes.

"I know it doesn't even come close to... Both your mother and I have failed you as parents, in so many ways and we _both _know it. We would like to change that, if you do. This isn't some ploy to butter you up; I know that wouldn't work. You'll be gone for a while and I just want you to have a good time and find what you need to heal... Not having to worry about money will help you do that."

I breathed in deep before looking at the paperwork and gasped at the amount looking back at me... "Dad..."

"No... Not a word. I've made provisions that the account gets topped up once a month..." The he started to smirk... "I'm about to say the words that every teenage girl wants to hear come from their father's mouths... 'So, have at it kid, spend up.'"

Mrs D snorted her amusement before patting Mr D's knee and stood up. "I have to get back into the kitchen, if I don't see you before you leave Abe..." She gave a nod and then walked out of the lounge room, dragging her husband behind her.

I placed the paperwork on the lamp table beside where I sat and stood up. "Did Mom tell you about today?"

"Yeah, she did. She knows it doesn't fix anything."

"I wouldn't say that. I know a lot has been said and done and maybe we'll never be as close as mother and daughter should be, but... today helped, it was a big step in the right direction and I appreciate her apology more than she realises."

It was true, while she could never take back all the shit she put me through, it still didn't mean that I didn't _want_ her to love me... I looked up and saw my father smiling.

"I'm glad. Well, look after yourself on your trip and have fun. You have my cell number; don't hesitate to call me if you ever need me... for anything."

"I won't, I promise." Then I took a deep breath and walked towards my father. "I also promise to spend up big."

He let out a huge laugh. "That's my girl..." He stopped laughing and gasped as I reached around his body and hugged him; my right ear pressed over his heart. It was a little awkward at first but he soon relaxed and returned the hug. I felt him press a kiss to the top of my head before he spoke again. "I'm so proud of you Rose, don't ever forget that."

I opened my eyes and saw Dimitri standing outside the games room doorway, smiling. He gave a wink before turning and going back into the room. I loved him so very much...

I walked my father out to his car and said a goodbye with promises that I would keep in contact with him while I was away. I stood there for a while after he'd left, just thinking about this unbelievable day from Pleasantville... Either that or Ashton Kutcher was about to jump out at me...

I jumped when a pair of strong arms wrapped around my waist. "Shit... you scared the shit out of me... You're lucky I didn't render you unconscious."

"You could have tried." He said laughing.

"Huh, I wouldn't have needed to _try,_" I said turning in his arms. "...not with my awesome fighting skills."

He just chuckled and took my face in his hands. "I love you." He whispered before pressing his lips against mine. I melted against him as he quickly deepened it and I wrapped my arms around his neck. He lifted me off the ground and seemed to be in no hurry to finish our make out session in full view of the neighbours.

"I love you too, Comrade." I said when we broke apart. I couldn't help but giggle at the scowl on his face... "Oops... sorry... I love you too, Master."

"That's more like it."

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Oh.. btw, I'm going to do something I've not done before... I'm gonna bribe... :-) If I get lots of reviews, I'll post up another chapter of My Lucky Day... Ah, hell... I'll post it anyway, but I'd love your reviews... hehehehehe


	37. Chapter 30 Road Trip

**Hi Everyone, Well I was hoping to have this out before Christmas but I've flat out... So, it's a little late. This is UNBETA'D, so if there are any mistakes, they're mine... I didn't want to intrude on my beta's christmas time with her family. More A/N at the end...  
Sandy**

**P.S. There is a lemony time at the end of the chapter, so be aware if you don't want to read it... it won't matter to the outcome of the chapter. **

* * *

**Chapter 30**

"Remember to call me tonight; I don't care what time it is, just call... alright?" Mrs D was just containing the tears that filling her eyes. Somehow, I didn't think she was too far away from losing it altogether. She'd been in this state since last night and I'm pretty sure that if we didn't get going soon, Lissa would be a blubbering mess right along side of her.

"I will Mom... you know I will." _Yup... her eyes are starting to water..._

"Bye Sweetie, be safe, have a good time and don't do anything that you'll regret." Mr D had come up behind Lissa's mom and put a hand on her shoulder. Personally I choose to think it was his way of telling his wife to let us kids go...

"You know me Dad... _caution _is my middle name..."

"Not for long..." I mumbled into Dimitri's massive arm, somehow he managed to merge the snort of laughter into a sniffle.

"Be good..." he whispered.

"So, are you two driving first?" Mr D asked the guys.

"Yeah, I think its best that way," Dimitri said, "...the girls are way too pumped to be let loose straight away, we'd be lost in the first hour."

"I'm a fantastic driver." Liss whined.

"Yes, of course you are dear..." Mrs D said smiling. "You '_immaculate' _driving record shows just how '_fantastic'_ you are..."

"Oww, sounds like a juicy story there." Tasha said raising her eyebrows.

"It is... There are lots of stories actually and they're all perfect for those long hours driving." Mr D said.

"Oh, you'll have to brush up on _your_ story telling skills, Dimka. Just be sure that he tells you the one about what he did in the science room, senior year."

My eyes widened and I smiled when Dimitri closed his eyes and moaned. "Oh, sounds like someone was a naughty boy in his youth after all... interesting." My breath caught when he looked at me... One eyebrow lifted as his lips puckered in an expression that screamed '_You have no idea how naughty I can be...' _He knew his message had been received by the smirk he gave me before turning to shake Mr D's hand.

We'd all stayed at the Dragomir's the night before; all of us wanting to spend as much time together as we could. We finally did get away, but no, we _didn't_ manage to do it before the floodgates opened.

The first stop on our travels was none other than Tasha's place to pick up Christian's car... We decided to take two cars for a number of reasons. I knew that spending anymore than an hour in a car with Christian would seriously test the limit of my patience and I'd end up throttling him... The other reason is that as couples, we would most definitely be needing time on our own over the coming months.

"Here Rose." Liss said leaning forward from the back seat; handing me a book of some sort.

"What's this?" I asked.

"I wouldn't touch it Rose..." Christian smirked... "It's called a _book _and it has this really weird curse attached to it... it makes its owner smart."

_Oh, it's on... _

"So, you've never seen one then huh? Maybe it's you she should be giving it to..."

Dimitri and Lissa started laughing; Christian just smirked at me. "You walked right into that one babe." Liss giggled. "It's a journal; I got one too. I thought we could write about our travels..."

"That doesn't include _single _night time activities either, Rose." Christian said trying to be smart.

"Well then, Lissa's will be a boring read then won't it."

"Christian..." Liss said, putting her hand over his. "Please stop, you know she'll just keep firing them back."

"Now I can see why you're taking two cars." Tasha said dryly as she sat beside Lissa.

=x=

From our first day, we tried to pack in as much fun as we could. Liss and I had searched the internet after deciding which way we were going to start and it all snowballed from there. From Laser Tag and Dodgems, rock climbing, hiking, swimming and skiing; we did it all. We even stayed on a ranch for three weeks and did our own version of cattle farming.

Towards the end of our stay there, we were out at the yards branding the calves. It had been long, tiring work and we were all exhausted and sweaty. The ranch owner, Ellis, told Christian to go push the last calf up into the crush but to do this, he had to walk through the large cattle yard. It was shin deep in manure and slippery as hell. To my amazement, he made it to the other side and got the calf where it needed to go but that's were his good luck ran out... I'd never seen the 'windmilling' arms and legs move only seen in movies and cartoons actually happen in real life until that day... but Christian showed it was a possible human movement.

All it took was one wrong move and down he went! Once he was down, he had more than enough trouble getting back up and by the time he did, he was nothing but a six foot three, blue eyed, fly ridden, walking, stinking pile of cow shit! It was the funniest thing I'd seen in all my life, I think I actually tore a stomach muscle laughing at him. Two days later, we could still smell it on him; hence why Liss had taken to sleeping on a cot in our room.

A month into our journey, I bought myself a little laptop and every second or third day we'd type out an email of our adventure to Lissa's mom and dad. We knew they worried about us, so it was our way of alleviating their concerns. In the spirit of walking the bridge that my parents had started to build, I emailed them as well, although their emails were less jovial in nature than Lissa's.

As the end of October and cool air of Winter approached, we contemplated taking a quick flight home for Christmas as it would have been the first time we'd not spent it with family, but Mr & Mrs D told us to stay where we were and have fun. She'd actually started looking forward to our emails and photos. So, that's what we did. Personally, I think she was living vicariously though us and having almost as much fun.

By the 18th of December we'd made our way to Utah; Cooper Mountain to be exact. We froze our asses off but we had an absolute ball... Between the skiing, snowboarding and tubing, we also went ice-skating, ate s'mores around the fire and I even got Dimitri to make snow angels with me. But it was Christmas Eve that the guys went and melted out cold assed hearts... They took us on horse drawn sleigh rides. I can't speak for Christian, but Dimitri certainly got lucky that night...

Christmas morning Liss and I decided to spoil them right back and made them breakfast in bed, but once our bedroom door was closed behind me, I took it that step further and managed to set up his breakfast on _me_... I put the tray of food gently on the end of the bed and quietly stripped off. Then I lay down beside his sleeping self and strategically covered myself in blueberry pancakes and whipped cream... thank God for central heating.

I was too worked up to wait for him to wake up on his own so I reached out, gently scraping his nipple with a fingernail. It hardened instantly making me smile, I did it again and the watched as his eyes fluttered open. When he focused and saw me looking back at him, I was gifted with breathtaking smile... But that only lasted for about a nanosecond before he realised I was his 'All You Can Eat' breakfast bar... When his eyes came back to mine... I could tell he was _very _hungry! The only thing he said before diving into his breakfast was '...you forgot the ice-cream.' That was my cue to reach down to the floor and pick up the small tub of vanilla Ben & Jerry's... By the time he'd finished, he was full... _I _was full and we were both extremely sticky!

January saw us travelling through New Mexico, Arizona and California. We couldn't be in California without going to Disneyland... two days running of course! I think we actually managed to go on every ride that they'd let us on... Christian got into trouble from Lissa when he stared at Tinker Bell a little longer than he should have...

She then screamed the house down at the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror... My ears were still ringing ten minutes after we left the ride... Apparently, she doesn't like the feeling of free falling... who woulda guessed..? And no, I'm not currently smiling. Personally, my favourite was Space Mountain; who _doesn't _like a roller coaster? Christian apparently!

Dimitri's favourite was the Indian Jones Adventure; which we had to go on twice... He was quite at home in his long, brown duster jacket... Although, he did like the Haunted Mansion quite a bit; I learnt that Dimitri really likes Jack Skellington.

=x=

It's now been five months since we drove out Mr & Mrs D's driveway.

There were times when Liss and I would need girl time and we'd drive together for a day or two, leaving the guys together. We even managed to go out without them... although _that_ didn't happen until just over two weeks ago and it was a _huge _step for all four of us.

Dimitri was _especially_ nothappy with letting me out of his sight, at all, even more so when we said we wanted to go to a bar... We had a huge fight that finished with me in tears and him walking out of our hotel room... Liss and I almost didn't end up going because of it, but I was stubborn enough to say 'Fuck him', and go anyway. It was a week later that Christian let it slip that Dimitri had followed us the whole night anyway...

I spent the week after _that_ little revelation driving and rooming with Liss... I was a mess really but on the outside, I looked as though I was doing just fine in my anger... Then he had to go and ruin my bad mood... In my stubborn, pouting, 'ignore everything' mode, I'd somehow missed the fact that Valentine's Day had snuck up on us all, Dimitri hadn't though.

_**Flashback...**_

_It's been seven days since I've spoken a word to Dimitri... I miss him so damn much. My whole body aches for him. I just want to feel his arms around me, his lips against my forehead, to hear his voice directed at me... But he won't even acknowledge that he pissed me off; even if his actions were only out of worry for my safety._

_This morning I woke up on the edge of the mattress, yet again... for the fourth day in a row. I honestly didn't know how Christian put up with her sleeping habits; they'd actually become worse since the last time we had to sleep in the same bed. _

_Instead of waking her, I decided to just face another lonely, miserable day... I really wasn't sure how much longer I could stand not speaking to him. I got dressed in some warm workout gear and headed out for my usual morning run. I'd been running for about five or ten minutes when I saw a weird sign nailed to a roadside electrical pole... _

_**I**_

What on earth?_ I thought to myself... I just shook my head and continued to run. Obviously, someone was playing a prank of some sort; either that or they forgot what else they wanted to write. I turned the corner at the end of the street and up ahead I noticed another sign nailed to yet another electrical pole..._

_**Love**_

"_Weird..." I said to myself, puffing. At the end of the street... another sign._

_**You**_

_I stopped on the side of the road beside the sign and looked up... It wasn't anything special, just one word... or three as the case may be... I looked around me but no-one was around, no-one walking their dogs or watering their lawns... I shook my head once more and continued on my run. _

_Another corner, another sign..._

_**Will**_

_That's when I started giggling... 'I love you Will...' I suppose that's one way to get a guys attention... The whole town, or the immediate area anyway, would now be giving this 'Will' guy a hard time. _

_I went down the slight decline at the end of the street and then turned right, as normal and as I turned the bend... Yup... another sign. "Well, I hope you got the message Will..." I said aloud. As I got closer, the word came into focus._

_**You**_

'_You'... _You what?_ I thought. _You are the love of my life? You are my heart? You are wonderful? Oh Will..._ I thought, _don't be an unapologetic Ass, learn to say sorry... _I looked down and shook my head as I continued on again. _

_I was way more than halfway through my run by now and on my way back to our motel room, I ran around the bend in the road that I'd run each morning that we'd been here, three streets away from our motel and as I looked up, another sign greeted me._

_**Marry me **_

_I stopped. _

"_Marry me?" I said quietly. I had to think back to all the signs I'd seen on my run... 'I Love You Will... You... Marry me?_

"_I love you... Will you marry me?" I said to no-one. Even if I hadn't been running, my heart would have been going just as fast as it was right now anyway. I turned around and looked behind me and just as in the other street, there was nobody around. I turned back to the sign and something further up caught my eye._

_My breath caught... Tears burned at the back of my eyes..._

_A good fifty feet down the road stood Dimitri... holding a sign._

_**Rose?**_

_Holy shit... I didn't know what to do, so I just stood there... Everything in front of me slowly shifted out of focus as my eyes welled with tears. They spilled over my cheeks as I blinked, trying to clear my vision._

_As I wiped at my cheeks, Dimitri started walking towards me. Closer and closer he came, it didn't take long until we reached each other, faster than I would have expected, then I realised that I'd actually been walking towards him too..._

"_I'm so sorry." He said when he finally stood in front of me. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was following you, but I love you and my life would end if anything happened to you, I had to make sure you were safe; I won't say sorry for that though."_

_All I could do was nod my head... _

"_I'm also sorry that I haven't held you in my arms for the last seven, long days." He reached out and wiped the tears that continued to fall. "I love you Rose, more than anything; I'll _never _apologise for that."_

_I gasped when he reached around and pulled something out of his back pocket as he bent down on one knee in front of me._

"_I never want to spend another day without you. You give me a reason; a reason to wake up of a morning, to go on, to laugh, to love... for everything... and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Rosemarie Hathaway, will you do me the honour of being able to call you my wife? Will you marry me?"_

_I swiped furiously at my eyes... I couldn't see the bloody ring! _

"_Yes..." The word squeaked out of my emotionally constricted throat. I coughed a bit to try and clear it... I had to have another go... "Yes... Oh fuck yes..." I yelled out as I flung myself at him. _

_He's lucky... or should I say, _I'm _lucky that he's such a big man... He caught me and stayed upright on bended knee but we only stayed that way for a few short seconds before he tightened his hold on me and stood up. I cried as I buried my face into his neck._

"_I'm sorry..." I cried. "I'm so sorry I'm such an irrational, moody, stubborn..." I stopped when he started laughing. "What?" I asked as I pulled away from his neck._

"_You do know that the first step in recovery is admitting you have a problem, right?"_

"_Oh shut up..." I couldn't help but laugh even though it came out in this snotty, hiccupish sort of way. "I love you too and I'd love nothing more than to marry you, Comrade."_

"_Comrade...? What have I told you about calling me that name, woman? You know there's only one name you can call me that's _not _my given name." I returned the smirk that he was now giving me..._

"_Yeah, I do... but I'll keep that name for later on tonight when I kick Lissa out of our room."_

_**End Flashback... **_

Lissa had screamed so loud when I showed her the ring... which was bloody huge blingy by the way, that someone had thought she was being attacked and went to tell the owners of the motel... Not surprisingly, I hadn't heard the knock at the door, but when they saw that all was well and Liss was bouncing up and down while holding my left hand in hers; they rolled their eyes and went back to the office.

She immediately grabbed her cell phone and dialled her mother... after yet _another _round of screaming and desperate looks from me to Dimitri... we found ourselves watching tornado Lissa tear around our room, stuffing everything she could find into our suitcases... "Liss... slow down woman. We can't go home yet, we've still..."

"We have to!" she interrupted. I tried to give Dimitri the universal 'Help me' glare, but as usual, he didn't get it... "There's so much to do and you heard Mom... plus, she's ready for us to come home anyway so why wait..."

"Because we've still got nearly a month of stuff planned out, that's why."

"Two weeks Rose... we only had another two weeks. Plus we've seen and done so much already. Mom's busting to have us home and you heard what she said..."

_Yeah, I did... so did the whole motel I'm sure!_ "Lissa, Dimitri only asked me..." I glanced down at my watch, "...two hours ago, we haven't even spoken about anything yet, _right Dimitri..._" I was pretty sure he heard the slight growl that accompanied the last part of that sentence though...

"Yes Rose... She's right Liss, we haven't spoken..."

"You'll have plenty of time to speak on the way home. Now... can I trust you two to get the rest of your shit together while I go and try to get Christian moving?" I just glared at her... "Well...?"

"Yes Lissa..." I groaned; there was no use arguing with her when she was like this, she would eventually win anyway so it was just faster and easier to agree with her. Exactly two seconds after the door to our room closed behind her, Dimitri locked it.

"Finally..." he growled as he walked towards me. I could see by the look in his eyes that he had other plans in mind than packing up. I looked down at the bedside table and grabbed the "Do Not Disturb" sign...

"Here put this on the door first." He laughed as he took it from me and returned to the door. Once that was done, he relocked it and turned to face me.

"Happy Valentine's day Rose." _Yes... it is. _But I wanted to get this show on the road. I hadn't touched him in a week and after his proposal, I was rather needy.

"Thank you... _Master_." _Yup... that did the trick! _

It didn't happen often these days, but Mini Me popped her head up and strapped on the leather chaps... She liked it a lot when Dimitri got all... '_mastery'_. His chin dropped and his eyes narrowed as he took a step towards me. He growled again as I stepped backwards towards the bed... Obviously I'm not meant to move...

When he reached me, his hands gently ghosted down my arms until my hands were held securely in his much larger ones. His eyes lowered as his fingers came to the ring that now adorned my left ring finger. "You have no idea what this means to me; to have you wear this ring; _my _ring. To know you're mine..."

"I've always been yours." I said honestly.

"I know, but now everyone else will know it too... with just one look." _Oh! Possessive, I like it... _

He reached down and wrapped his arms around my waist; lifting me up before walking away from the bed. "Where are we...? Oh!"

He snickered seeing the realisation of where he was taking me... the bathroom. I _really _liked having a shower with Dimitri; I loved making sure to clean _every _inch of him, repeatedly. And I did... until we heard the pounding at our room door.

We quickly dried off and the dressed to the _empty _threats Lissa kept making of coming into our rooms whether we were dressed or not.

"So, our car Rose?" Lissa asked referring to Christian's car.

"Not on your life..."

"Good, I love you and all but I seriously need you gone."

"Oh! Nice Liss, some friend you are!" We laughed and parted ways, going to the correct vehicles for the first time in a week.

"I've missed you, Roza." Dimitri said once I was buckled in. "I don't care how mad you get at me; please don't ever turn your back on me. You're my life, I only ever want to protect you, keep you safe and happy."

I felt so guilty. "I'm so sorry... I promise I won't act like a little school girl ever again."

"No need to go that far babe." He smirked as he started the car.

I gasped and my mouth fell open in shock... Every now and then, Dimitri showed a whole new side to me, a private side that _no-one _got to see but me...

"Best close that mouth Rose, before I find something to put in it..."

_Oh fuck... _The full out guffaw, complete with head thrown back, must have said everything that needed to be said about the look on my face... I couldn't have been more shocked and speechless by his words than if he'd suddenly gone extremely pale and sprouted elongated eye teeth and said... '_I've come.. to suck.. your blood, HA HA HA!_' Although, I may have let him do that; he made me go into some sort of blissed out state when he gave me love bites...

In the hour after we'd driven off, Dimitri had told me the story behind the ring; it was actually his mothers, the only thing that she'd kept from her ass of a husband and that was only because it had been _his _mother's ring. I kind of liked that it had history. After that we'd spoken a lot about where we wanted our future to go; living arrangements, a timeframe to getting married, work... those sorts of things. Since being away, Dimitri had been training all of us in Tae Kwon Do and even though Liss and Christian were quite good, they didn't take it all that seriously, at least not like me.

Sparring with Dimitri was... exciting. As I got better, he became more willing to land hits. His opinion was that I would never improve if I didn't have some sort of fear of getting hurt... and improve I did. We learnt over time that if we really wanted to go at it, we did it when we were alone because our full on sessions normally turned into something else. One time in Los Angeles, we nearly got caught when Dimitri had me seeing stars against a wall...the good kind of stars. God that was a fantastic lesson!

Remembering those lessons soon had me all worked up and I _had _missed him a lot during the last week, _and _I was one behind after our shower. I turned to my left and looked at the profile of his gorgeous face... My eyes followed the sharp line of his jaw until it disappeared behind the silky strands of his long brown hair. I took in his strong neck and watched as his chest moved with the pull and release of air in his lungs. His narrow waist, his muscular thighs... and the pot of gold in between...

I was vaguely aware of the change in my temperature, my breathing... I bit my bottom lip and closed my eyes when I realised that I was squirming in my seat... apparently Dimitri noticed too...

"Feeling restless are you Roza?" He said smirking... The shit...

_I'll show you restless... _I thought to myself. "I wouldn't say restless, no, more like... hungry." Then I leant across the centre of the car... "Hungry for you." I whispered against his cheek. I could feel more than see the smile that pulled at his mouth; I could only imagine that his eyebrow would be lifted as well. While running the tip of my tongue around the shell of his ear, I unbuckled the seatbelt as it was digging into my hip, he didn't seem to notice...

I reached for his right hand that was gripping the steering wheel; wrapping my fingers around his before whispering to him one last time... "Hang on tight my love..." I moved my hand down to his waistband... "...and concentrate... real _hard_."

There was no mistaking my intentions as I popped the buttons of the fly of his jeans. He said nothing; _did _nothing to stop me, just turned his head slightly to look down at me... By the time he turned back to the road, he was hard. He shifted his hips slightly, making room for me to release him; he wanted this as much as I did...

"Oh shhhhit!" he hissed through clenched teeth as I took him into my mouth. It wasn't long before I felt his hand weave into the hair at the back of my neck. I couldn't do everything I normally do because his jeans were in the way, but I still made it good for him... "Oh hell Rose..."

Quickly, his breathing sped up and his ab muscles tightened; he was close... He tried to move me away but I didn't want that... It wasn't something I did very often but I knew that there was nothing in the car to clean up with... so what's a girl to do? So I did...

"Not that I'm complaining, but what brought that on?" Dimitri asked once his breathing slowed a bit.

"I've missed you... a lot! Plus, I owed you one." I smiled as I listened to his laughter.

"I love you Roza. There are drinks in the back if you want one." He said before kissing me.

A few hours later when we pulled over for a pit stop, I was a little confused at the looks on Lissa and Christian's faces. "What's up with you two?" I asked them.

"Nothing, nothing at all." Liss said smiling.

"Hey Dimitri, I thought you were a good driver."

"He is..." I said in defence. "Why would you say that?"

"Well we couldn't work out what all that swerving was about a few hours ago... We were wondering if you were drunk... but then we realised it wasn't you doing the drinking..."

_Oh crap! _

Dimitri and I stood in the carpark as we watched our friends walk into the truck stop laughing their asses off...

"Or does that count as eating Rose?" Christian called out just before the door closed behind them. Dimitri was barely keeping himself from laughing too...

"I'm never going to live this down..." I said as we started walking again.

* * *

**There will be probably one more chapter to the story after this unless the characters take over again... (like Dimitri did in this chapter) I had NOT planned on the end part of this chapter... AT ALL... it was all HIM! I was just as surprised as Rose and Lissa... I have no idea how long he had that planned! Also, there are some piccies of the ring on my facebook page too if you'd like to have a look...**


	38. Chapter 31 Looking Back

**Hi Everyone... Well, here it is... the last chapter... I've loved writing this story so much and all of your wonderful reviews have made me smile on so many occasions. So thank you all so very much. **

**A HUGE thank you to my wonderful beta delicious for all of her hard work... I luv ya lots babe, keep your chin up!**

**And before you ask... yes, I will now continue with Achilles... Woo Hoo! :-) In this new year, I will also be posting another story that's about 3/4 prewritten, so when I upload it, I will post a couple of chapters daily... Won't that be nice! hehehe**

**And finally... There is a song that I think goes perfectly with this story, especially this last chapter. If you'd like to listen while you read, here's the link... (just take out the ()'s and spaces... ) **

**http:/www (.) youtube (.) com/watch?v=vp7nD29v8cU  
Fight Another Day by Brandon Heath.**

**Till next time, and I hope everyone has a great and safe 2012!  
Sandy**

* * *

**Epilogue**

**Chapter 30 Looking Back.**

Five years... I can't believe it's been five years since my life changed forever. There are some days that I look back at it all and think that it was all just a really, really bad nightmare; something that I really didn't go through. But then I'll either look up and see Dimitri standing in front of me or I'll be at work or training and I'll know that for all that to be in my life, the bad stuff must have really happened...

Memories of that horrible day in the hospital; more disjointed flashes and feelings rather than full on images, would occasionally flicker through my mind. Normally they wouldn't interrupt the flow of my day any longer than it took to push them back into the pit they belonged in, but in the years since our 'healing holiday' as we jokingly refer it as, they've cropped up uninvited a few nights...

What happened after we returned was clearer in my head...

_**Flashback **_

_It took us less time to get home than what I would have liked and as we drove up to the Dragomir house, my stomach dropped... _

"_What in the hell are they doing here?" I said to no-one in particular._

"_Only one way to find out." Dimitri said as he gave my hand a squeeze._

_Dimitri pulled the car up on one side of the driveway, allowing room for Christian to pull up beside us. As we all got out of our cars, Lissa looked at me confused..._

"_Is that who I think it is?" she asked._

"_Yeah, they'd better have good news."_

_Just then the front door opened and Mrs D came flying out with a smile spread across her face, threatening to snap her head in half... _

"_My babies... ERIC! Get your ass out here!" _

_God, how I missed this woman... Her joy at having us home almost made me forget who was obviously waiting for us in the house._

"_Mom..." Liss said as her mother flung herself at her. Reflexively, Christian's hand came up behind Liss, steadying her from being pushed to the ground. Mrs D gave her daughter a quick kiss on the cheek before looking over to me and holding her arm out, inviting me in for a hug._

"_My girls are home... As much as I loved that you had a good time and wrote to me religiously allowing me to live vicariously though you; don't ever go away for that long again!" _

_I couldn't help but laugh as Mrs D kissed my cheek._

"_We won't Ma."_

_After a few more hard hugs and cheek pats, Liss and I were released... sort of. Our hands were still gripped firmly in my pseudo mother's... I looked up to see Mr D holding his hand out to Dimitri and Christian._

"_I'd like to thank you guys for looking after our girls so well; and I hear there's some good news too!"_

"_Oh, shit... I can't believe he said that first!" Mrs D cried out. "Congratulations Rose, give me look Sweetie." I looked over to Dimitri as I lifted my left hand to find him grinning like he'd just won the most coveted prize on earth... Well, I suppose he had! "Holy shit... Oh, sorry, but... Wow! That's one seriously beautiful ring. It looks... Is it an older ring?" she asked both of us._

"_Yeah, it used to belong to Dimitri's grandmother." I told her. I knew he didn't give me this because his father had given it to his mother, so I just left that part out of the story._

"_It's beautiful and it's wonderful that you have something that means so much."_

"_What are they doing here?" I asked, nodding to the car sitting by the curb._

"_They called this morning and when I said that you were on your way home, they said that they'd come over, they have some things to talk to you about I think."_

_Great..._

_We decided that we'd get the luggage later and deal with whatever awaited us in the house._

"_Rose, Dimitri, It's good to see you both. Looks like your time away was beneficial." Detective Morris said._

"_Yeah, we had a great time; it was a shame it had to end. If it were up to me..." I said glaring at Lissa, "I wouldn't be here right now." She answered me by poking her tongue at me. _

"_Well, I'm sorry to have to put a downer on your return, well not so much a downer, more like having to talk about '_them'_... I didn't want to interrupt your holiday unless I really had to and that's why I called Mrs Dragomir this morning. It was quite fortuitous that you were on your way home when I called."_

"_Yes... quite." I said dryly. "So, what's going on? I'd actually expected something to happen before now."_

"_Unfortunately Rose, the wheels of justice are sometimes rather slow, but eventually they do get there. A date for the trial has been set. After Aaron's little '_tale' _at the hearing, things have been moving along quite nicely. It's been proven that he didn't send any message to Adrian. Even though he still won't admit it, I know that he knew _exactly _what the other two were up to and was an active participant in everything that happened that night." _

_She wasn't the only one..._

"_So when's the trial set for?" Mr D asked._

"_Next week." Whoa... "We'll need to get you in to go over your testimony and talk you though what to expect, what the defence is likely to put you through."_

_I saw by her face and those of everyone around me that they didn't think I would be able to handle it._

"_I'm not the victim I once was." I told Detective Morris with conviction. "Dimitri has taught me to fight physically, my family has taught me to fight emotionally... but it was Jesse and his last attack that taught me to fight mentally. His first attack took away my sense of security; in myself and in my own home. When he attacked me again and no-one was there to help me... I had to dig deep and find the courage in myself to fight the fear that he'd made me feel for so long... and I did. Even though it took me a while to get from that point to where I am now, I _knew_ without a doubt that I had it in me to fight for myself, that I was NO victim. And now... he no longer represents my nightmares..."_

_When she smiled, I felt a little embarrassed about my rant but as I looked around the room, her face was mirrored in everyone else's, including Adrian's aunt... _

_**End Flashback**_

The trial went forward and I felt strong and in control. I looked those pricks in the eyes as I told the court everything they put me through. The physical pain, the bruises, the cut lips, the broken bones... I told of the soul destroying terror of being touched by males, even from men that I had known and loved for years like my own father, Andre and Mr D who were as much my family as those I shared blood with. Detective Morris had told me not to specifically say that they'd killed Mason as that was a whole other case and saying too much could potentially allow them to get away with it... I could _never _let that happen. I let it known just how much they'd taken away from me.

'_They took my trust and turned it into fear. They took my ability to go to college away, to go to a movie, to go to anywhere where there were crowds. I also lost my boyfriend that night; a caring, loving young man with his whole life ahead of him and I couldn't even go to his funeral without a panic attack and covering my head so I could fool myself into thinking there wasn't anyone else there. There wasn't one aspect of my life that there attack on me didn't rip away.' _

Jesse, Ralf and Aaron were all charged with Criminal Assault, attempted rape and various drug and conspiracy charges. Morris and Ivanson weren't sure how they'd go on the last charge but they were hopeful! Jesse's second assault on me at my house, accounted for the additional charges against him.

Aaron's ramblings at the preliminary hearing a couple of months before only made him look like the liar he was and indicated that he was trying anything he could to shift the blame onto the other two; I had no doubt that after the trial ended he would have found prison an even worse place to be in _without _his 'friends' to back him up.

I knew something more was going with that whole story, I'd seen the looks between Adrian and Dimitri whenever it came up in conversation, but nothing has ever been said about it... and I've never asked.

It wasn't long after those three were sentenced and sent to jail that we had to face the next trials; Victor's and Natoli's. Victor's went on for nearly twelve months and we were all shocked at just how intricate his plan had become. At his trial when they read out his charges, it read like a short story... They included things like conspiracy, abduction, fraud and firearm charges just to name a few; he was found guilty on all charges and would spend the next forty-six years behind bars and at his age, that meant he was likely to die in jail... I couldn't feel sorry for that fact.

Natoli's trial wasn't so straight forward. He had no _real _part in his father's plans, other than what he'd been forced into doing. As much as we'd all hated the fact that Christian had been shot by his hand, we knew that Nat had been almost as much a victim in his father's crimes as the rest of us.

Lissa, Dimitri and I all testified on his behalf, even Christian. The whole time Liss and I were on the stand, tears fell unhindered down Nat's cheeks; anyone could see the pain he felt over his part in it all, even if he hadn't done it willingly. The jurors found him not guilty on nearly all charges but guilty of the lesser crime of failing to report on what he knew his father was doing... Well, not those exact words but close enough... Because of our testimonies, the judge was more lenient on sentencing Nat and he was spared prison time but was put on a good behaviour bond for the next five years and made to do 200 hours of community service as well as a hefty fine.

We've all stayed in contact with him, watching him as he forges an honest name for himself in the advertising business, something he'd always wanted to do, and now that he didn't have his father telling him what he could and couldn't do... well, he was finally living a mostly happy life; but, we can all tell how lonely he is. We've actually tried to get him to go out with us a few times but we're pretty sure that even after all this time, his part in his father's plans still haunts him. Unbeknownst to him, we've set him up on a blind date in two weeks time with a woman that Dimitri and I work with, she's hot and strong and doesn't take shit from anyone... I can't wait!

That's another new development... For the last two years, Dimitri and I run our own personal protection business. My mother even works for us now... She was sick of all the paperwork and stress of administration and wanted to back 'out in the field'... We don't really deal with the 'corporate and business' side of things like Guardian Security did, we do more personal guarding of celebrities and the likes... Sometimes I wonder which would be less dangerous; corporate America or Hollywood.

_**Flashback **_

"_Rose, I'll need you up front today alright?" my mother said on our way to our client's house. "It'll seem a little less conspicuous having you walk with Scarlett than me."_

"_Okay." _

_Even though technically Mom worked for me, I was still what you would call 'new' to this business and I wasn't naive enough to recognise her experience in the field. I always deferred to her and Dimitri when we went out, especially with such a high profile client like Scarlett. Every time I went out, I came home with more knowledge and more confidence in my abilities. _

_Mom and I had both been hired to walk the red carpet with Scarlett because of threats made because of her latest movie... Some unusually aggressive fan had made it clear that they weren't happy and would "make sure she knew just how much they disagreed with her choice of movie" as the note said... _

_She tried to do the right thing and talk to her fans as she walked; she even signed a few books thrust into her face. When a hand shot out between her and where my mother was standing, the air was suddenly charged with nervous energy. I'd never seen my mother move so fast! The man who had tried to grab Scarlett was suddenly pulled to the ground and practically hog-tied before he even knew what was happening. It was _so _cool! I quickly made our apologies to everyone around us and promptly escorted Scarlett inside before anything else happened. _

_It wasn't until the drive home from Scarlett's home in the early hours of the next day that I realised that my mother had been hurt in the scuffle. Apparently while she'd held the man down with the weight of her own body, some stupid female in the crowd had stomped on her leg with the heel of her stiletto shoe! The gash and subsequent blood loss had been hidden under her dress. My mother was one tough woman!_

_**End Flashback **_

My relationship with my parents isn't really as close as most 'child/parent' relationships go, but we're closer than I _ever _thought possible. After losing a month long argument with my father, Dimitri and I finally relented into taking my father's offer of giving us the down payment for a house of our own. In a lot of ways, I didn't want to be indebted to my father and I know just how much it took for Dimitri to take the money. With a mother as strong as Olena, he'd been brought up with a strong sense of self worth and the 'work for the things you want' belief... It was actually his mother that swayed him... '_Think of this as another way you can help heal Rose's relationship with her parents... If I had been lucky enough to have the money Abe has, I would offer you both the exact same thing as he is... and I wouldn't take no for an answer! It's what parents do, if they can.' _

They tried to help with furnishing but with one look from Dimitri; they backed off... It didn't take long before we had the place looking great and feeling like 'us'. We even started having regular dinners with them in the hopes of 'building some more bridges' with them. Anymore friggin bridges and I'd have start building a boat, because obviously I now lived in Pittsburgh! Maybe I could make a sign and nail it to the letterbox... 'Little Pittsburgh, House of Bridges'... HA! Personally I just think he hated that I didn't have a mother I deserved; a mother like his... Even though I was more than happy with having that relationship with both Mrs D and Olena, he wanted more for me; how could I not love him even more for that?

Mia transferred to California twelve months after starting college, she missed Eddie to much apparently; I couldn't blame her really. Six months after moving, they married. They also have a daughter, Cassy who is eighteen months old and they are expecting baby number two in a couple of weeks. They knew what they're expecting but they won't tell anyone. We've told them on every occasion we speak how rude that is, but it's had no effect on getting them to spill the beans, they just laugh and say, 'You'll see!'... They didn't even say a word when Liss sent a truck and a little boy's outfit and I sent a doll and a pink frill dress in the mail... All we got was a thank you phone call saying how much they loved the gifts... All we knew was that one of us was right...

Speaking of marriages, Andre finally convinced Sydney that she couldn't live without him and they're currently living in England setting up the new European branch of Dragon Medical Laboratories. Adrian finally found a woman to put him in his place and made him fall to his knees; the only problem with his choice was in the fact that the girl turned out to be Dimitri's younger sister, Viktoria. I honestly thought Dimitri was going to kill him when he found out. Luckily Viktoria is as fiery and obstinate as her brother and quite able to fight her own battles. They aren't married yet, but they are engaged and living together.

Then we had Lissa and Christian, who finally tied the knot two years after she started her medical studies, in a ceremony that would rival the English monarchy. She certainly looked the part of a princess complete with tiara headpiece and everything; she even arrived at the church in a horse drawn carriage. And as much as it pains me to say this, Christian didn't look half bad in his tux. But nowhere near what the man next to him looked like, nothing could tear my eyes away him...

Imagine this... A six foot, seven inch tall, muscle bound Russian God staring at you like he wanted to take you hard and fast while you walked down the aisle towards him. I think it was only the fact that we were in a church full of family and friends that he stayed where he was. He had all my girly bits go nuclear and in the back of my 'Dimitri induced, dirty, gutter mind', I held out hope that the long assed bridesmaid dress I was wearing would mop up the snail trail I was surely leaving in my wake... I'd thought that my want and need for him would diminish over time; I can't tell you how glad I was to be proven wrong... If anything, it had only got worse!

If anyone asked me how the service was that day, I wouldn't have been able to answer them with any sort of truth, well; I suppose I could say it was beautiful as I'm sure it was... I really had no idea how it turned out, I spent the whole time with my eyes locked together with my man... I desperately wanted to pull his long brown hair out of its bindings and run my fingers through it silkiness.

But I digress...

It's now five years and I'm sitting in the passenger seat of our car, looking at my man in profile.

"Are you sure you're alright, Roza?"

"Yes babe, I'm good..."

"Then why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like that..." I couldn't help but smile at his gorgeous face. "Shouldn't you... you know, be more in pain?"

I thought about it for a while and realised he was probably right. "Probably." I wondered briefly if I should be worried about the fact that I wasn't in pain...

We pulled up outside the hospital and he turned to me seriously. "Stay there; I'll come help you out."

"Yes Master..."

"Stop it!" He said wide eyed and barely holding back a smirk. I waited patiently as he half ran around the front of the car to my side, smiling as he opened the door and reached a hand out for me. "You seriously worry me sometimes, my Love."

"No I don't... you love it."

"...Normally. Just let me get you inside and make sure everything's alright... please?"

"Fine... lead on Comrade." I giggled at the soft growl emanating I got in return. I loved pushing his buttons.

"I knew tonight was a bad idea, I had a bad feeling about letting you come..."

"_Letting _me? Letting? Dimitri that would imply you had a choice."

"I _did _have a choice..." he huffed, "You're just too bloody stubborn for your own good."

"Just how you like me..."

Just then we walked into the emergency room. We walked up to the front desk and the nurse on duty looked up almost bored.

"Can I help you?"

"Yes, my wife's waters broke about thirty minutes ago." Dimitri answered. The nurse looked at me, probably waiting for me to start screaming... or clutching my huge belly. I briefly considered that it might hurry her up if I did...

"Are you sure it was your waters? Maybe the baby just pressed against your bladder."

_What the hell? _"I did _not _piss myself, trust me..."

Dimitri's right hand reached out and grabbed my left hand which was now attached to the underside of my belly. It felt so tight down there.

"Have you had any contractions?" Nurse Ratchet asked.

"Not that I'm aware of." I said testily... I just wanted to get this show on the road; I was sick of looking like a beached whale and I wanted this baby out! As in five minutes ago... Just then I heard multiple footsteps behind us...

The cavalry has arrived.

"Why are you still here?" My mother said as she came to stand beside me.

"Well apparently, there's some issue over the fact that I've probably just pissed myself as I haven't felt any contractions..."

The nurse was about to speak when my mother let fly...

"WHAT! Oh for fucks sake..." Yeah, I liked this side of my mother. "Listen here Nurse Twadwollop... For four generations of my family, we don't _get _contractions until right at the very end of our labour and that's normally when the baby is coming _out! _My daughters water broke... more than half an hour ago," she said looking down at her watch. "... and if she's anything like me or my aunts and my mother, she's probably nearly fully dilated already... so if you don't want to be personally sued for making my daughter deliver her first child on the cold, dirty floor of this hospital then you'll get off you fat ass and get her a wheelchair... Comprende?"

"You can't..." the nurse spluttered.

"GET UP!" Mom yelled.

"Mom... it's alright, there's no... OH Holy shit!" I gasped as I gripped my stomach. "Fuck that hurts..." I felt something burning between my legs and it took everything in me _not_ to pee myself right then and there. Pressure like... well, I don't know what it was like, I'd never felt anything like it before. If I didn't know better I would have thought someone just shoved the hand where the sun didn't shine... My stomach clenched hard and all I could do was scream in my head...

I didn't hear anything else my mother may or may not have said, but by the time the next contraction hit, my ass was in a wheelchair and I was being pushed down a long corridor.

"It's alright babe, I'm with you every step of the way." Dimitri said from beside me.

"I thought we'd discussed the fact you have no choice in anything that happens in your life Dimitri... now it's mine... OH Shit!"

"Breathe Roza." Even in my pain, I could hear the smile in his words... he would pay for that!

"Stop smiling, shit-for-brains... This was all your bright fuckin' idea..." I said through clenched teeth.

"Sweetheart, remember you didn't want to swear throughout the labour." I almost told him where to shove his advice... I guess my rather heated glare told him _exactly _what I'd wanted to say as he lifted his hands in the universal sign of 'Whatever you want, dear!' If I wasn't in so much pain, I would most likely be laughing right now.

Seconds later we were wheeled into a birthing suite with my baby doctor hot on our heels. When I turned to Dimitri in surprise he told me that he'd called him as my mother got me into the car at the reception. Now my stupid 'pregnant brain' finally realised why we'd had more than enough staff at the wedding of our clients; apparently I was the only one who didn't think going into labour on the night was a possibility.

"Good evening Mrs Belikov, I see someone's in a bit of a hurry." He motioned to my rock hard stomach. "Can you hop up onto the bed and I'll have a look at where we're at shall we?"

When I tried to move, all I could do was scream... bloody hell that hurt... I clenched my eyes as hard as I clenched my jaw; the pain wasn't like the labour pains. I felt arms come around me and lift me out of the chair.

"Be careful as you put her down, she's obviously further along than we thought." I heard someone say. "Breathe Rose."

_I can't... holy hell this hurts! _That's all I could think of – the pain. It was so 'all encompassing'; for the first time in a long time, the thought of _'I can't do this, I can't handle this' _went through my head.

"Yes, you can Roza. You can do this, you're strong... so, so strong, that's why I love you."

=x=

Thirty seven minutes later, I lay panting on the narrow excuse for a bed, holding my son to my chest with tears streaming down my face.

"I'm so proud of you." Dimitri whispered against my lips. I giggled a snotty laugh as I looked into his watery eyes. "My son..." My heart doubled in size as I watched him gaze at his son in absolute awe. His huge, calloused hands traced our child's face with a touch as soft as feathers. "He's so beautiful."

"Like his dad." I whispered.

"Roza, I'll go clean him up for you." Olena whispered above me. She had as many tears falling down her face as I did. "I'll bring him back as soon as I make sure everything's good, okay?"

I nodded and watched as she walked over to the other side of the room. As she went to work, measuring and weighing and cleaning, I turned back to a radiant Dimitri. "We did good, didn't we?"

"We most certainly did Beautiful. How could we not when he has you for his mother. I love you so very much."

"I love you babe." He kissed me softly as Lissa walked up to me with a nurse holding a needle.

"Congrats Rose, he's beautiful... Sorry to interrupt, but you need to have this."

"Well, why are you standing down there?" I asked.

"It goes in your leg." I grimaced... I hated needles in the leg, they hurt like a bitch. "It's to help you pass the afterbirth." Liss hadn't finished her medical studies and even though she probably knew more than the nurse, she wasn't allowed to do anything medical yet, even if it was just a needle. Dimitri knew that I wanted her there with me throughout the labour and made sure she was allowed in the birthing suite.

Within thirty seconds of the needle, I felt pains similar to labour pains but nowhere near as bad. "Oh, that's just gross..." I said after the afterbirth came out.

Then I had my boy back in my arms. "Hey baby..." I whispered, "I've been dying to meet you." I pressed a kiss to his forehead and breathed his wonderful baby scent in... There was _nothing _in this world that smelt better than 'baby'... especially your own.

He started squirming and making little grunts as he pulled funny faces, making me smile. "What's he doing?" I asked looking up at Olena.

"Looks like he's hungry already, Roza."

"Like father, like son." I mumbled as I looked over to Dimitri. He just smirked and shrugged his shoulders unapologetically.

"Dimitri, do something constructive and help me sit Roza up." Olena said. Dimitri watched with wonder in his eyes as I was shown how to correctly attach my son to my breast; it warmed my heart to see him so taken by this whole event. I knew he'd be a wonderful father, but it was another thing entirely to see him melt in the presence of this tiny little person we'd created... Well, tiny probably wasn't the right word. Weighing in a nine pound seven, our son really couldn't be called small...

"Have you guys decided on a name yet?" Liss asked.

"Yes, we have. Nikolai Mason Belikov." Dimitri answered. It had actually been his idea to give him Mason's name. He said he'd be proud to have his son named after a man who'd died protecting me, ensuring that neither he nor his sacrifice, ever be forgotten.

It's no wonder that I feel like I'm living in a dream. Honestly, how could I, Rosemarie Hathaway, be lucky enough to have someone as perfect as Dimitri in their lives, let alone be married to him...? Okay, he's not _completely_ perfect, he has his faults, but he's 100% perfect for me and I love him with my whole heart and soul.

"Well, now that you're both all cleaned up and presentable and we have the right person with the full belly at last, I'm pretty sure that there are certain people outside who won't be leaving until they meet this gorgeous boy. Are you ready for a quick visit?" Olena said smiling.

"Yeah, okay." I said happily. As she walked to the door, I turned to Dimitri and smiled. "Would you like the honours of the first burp?" I asked him.

"I'd love to." He smiled. I couldn't keep the shit-eating grin off my face as I watched him expertly bring his son into his arms and place soft kisses against his head, nose and lips... "Привет моему сыну ("Privet moemu synu; Hello my son.)"

When the shock of finding out we were pregnant finally wore off, I knew right away that I wanted our child to speak both languages. Dimitri had taught me a fair amount of Russian since we'd been together but there was still a lot I didn't know. I wanted to be able to speak fluently so that my child could too, so while I was pregnant, we spoke Russian the majority of the time, unless we were at work or if I didn't know the words. It was extremely hard and extremely frustrating at times, but it did the trick.

Dimitri's family helped too, only ever speaking to me in Russian and now it was only on the odd occasion that I needed to use a word or phrase that I hadn't used before that would catch me up.

I was too busy melting at the vision in front of me to hear the room fill up behind me; it was a hand to my shoulder that pulled me out of my stupor. I turned around to the shining eyes of my mother.

"Congratulations Rose, he's beautiful... just like you."

_Oh, crap... here comes the waterworks again! _

She kissed my forehead and my eyes went to the smiling face of my father as Mom stood up and walked over to the other side of my bed to where my reasons for living currently sat.

"You did good, Kiz." Dad said proudly. "He's a big boy, no!"

"That he is, dad... How could he not be really?"

"He's not as big as his daddy was, you'll be happy to know." Olena said smiling.

"You're kidding... Oh, thank God for that." Everyone laughed around me. "I'm scared to ask."

"Dimitri was the equivalent to ten pound six; I thought I was going to die!"

"You better thank your lucky stars he didn't come out any bigger Dimitri, you wouldn't be sitting there smiling if he had!"

=x=

As I sit here on the back deck of our house in the morning sun, watching as my body continues to feed and nourish our newborn son, I thank God for the day that Dimitri came into my life. I know without a shadow of a doubt that without his love, his strength and his guidance, I would not be where I am today.

He let me borrow his strength when I didn't have enough of my own and then he showed me how to find my strength in the shadows that Jesse and the others had forced it in. He taught me to trust again, to taught me love again, but most of all, he taught me how to fight back.

**The End!**

* * *

**P.S. If you want to know when the new story goes up, put me on Author Alert...  
Also, even though this story is officially finished, watch out for another update in a couple of weeks. It will contain  
a part of this chapter that I haven't put in... :-) I know you're all missing it, but it didn't flow, so it'll be in an outtake!  
Toodles... XXX**


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